





Class 22 '^3 __ 

Book F . 

Copyright N°_ 


COPYRIGHT DEPOSIT: 



































































FAIRYTALES 

COMPILED AND EDITED BY 

MARION FLORENCE LANSING M A 

>i 

VOL. I 

ILLUSTRATED BY 

CHARLES COPELAND 



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GINN AND COMPANY 

BOSTON NEW YORK 
CHICAGO -LONDON 





























{library Of 00N3RE3S 

TwoCople* Heceiveo 

DEC 26 i 907 

Oopynsni entry 

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CLASS A XXc. No. 

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COPY B. 


Copyright, 1907, by 
MARION FLORENCE LANSING 

ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 


57-12 


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fEbe gltfjenieum -Press 

GINN & COMPANY - PRO¬ 
PRIETORS • BOSTON • U.S.A. 


IV 








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S • 

■5 PREFACE 

i 

Fairy Tales , of which this is the first volume, 
follows without break an earlier book, Rhymes and 
Stories , and is made up chiefly of Marchen, or 
nursery tales, with a few drolls, or comic anec¬ 
dotes. The term “fairy tale” has been used in 
its popular sense as including “tales in which 
occurs something ‘ fairy,’ something extraordinary, 
— giants, fairies, dwarfs, speaking animals. It 
must also be taken to cover tales in which what is 
extraordinary is the stupidity of the actors.” 

The tales are usually romantic, with a definite 
plot, but without emphasis on the point of their 
being fact or fiction. They do not locate the hero 
in history or require a definite time or place, but 
begin with “ Once upon a time, in a certain town 
or village,” or with some equally indefinite intro¬ 
duction. They deal with the supernatural, and al¬ 
ways end well for the hero or heroine. They have 
usually been retold from their original traditional 
form by some skilled story-teller. Very few are 
distinctly English, though those from other lands 
have been adopted by English-speaking peoples. 


V 



VI 


PREFACE 


Sagas, of which “Jack the Giant Killer” is an 
example, differ from the other classes in having 
definite localities and dates assigned to them. 
They have been reserved for Tales of Old Eng¬ 
land, which immediately follows in the series. We 
have been compelled to omit from these volumes 
many tales which are worthy favorites, but with 
at least as many fairy stories as are here collected 
every child should be familiar. The aim has been 
to give a proportionate representation to each of 
the great story-tellers, and to each kind of story, 
and to introduce the best examples of the leading 
motifs of folklore. The original sources have been 
sought out in every case, — in English chapbooks, 
in collections of 1696 and 1795, in German and 
Old French, — and these versions have been care¬ 
fully and minutely compared with the best versions 
of later times and of the present. Besides the 
scholarly interest attaching to such research, the 
practical effect has been to simplify the stories 
by dropping off the fanciful additions made by 
successive editors and returning to the beautiful 
simplicity and the clear, forceful language of these 
wonderful products of the story-teller’s art. 


Cambridge, Massachusetts 


M. F. LANSING 



CONTENTS 


Page 

Rumpelstiltskin. I 

Doll-in-the-Grass.9 

How TO TELL A REAL PRINCESS. 14 

The Frog Prince.17 

t 

Cinderella.26 

PIans in Luck.42 

Diamonds and Toads.56 

Puss in Boots.62 

Rapunzel.75 

Beauty and the Beast.86 

The Steadfast Tin Soldier.108 

Hop-o’-my-Thumb.. . 118 

“Ainsel”.139 

Peronella.141 

Fair Goldilocks.149 

NOTES.177 


Vll 















































































































































































FAIRY TALES 


RUMPELSTILTSKIN 


HERE was once a miller who was very 



JL poor, but he had a beautiful daughter. 
Now it happened that he had occasion to 
speak with the King, and in order to appear 
a person of some consequence he told him 
that he had a daughter who could spin straw 
into gold. 

“ Now that is an art worth having,” said 
the King to the miller; “if your daughter is 
as skillful as you say, bring her to-morrow to 
my palace and I will put her to the test.” 

When the girl was brought to him he led 
her into a room which was full of straw, and 
giving her a spinning wheel and spindle he 
said, “ Now set to work, and if by to-morrow 
morning early you have not spun this straw 
into gold, you shall die.” 


2 


FAIRY TALES 


Then he locked the door himself, and left 
her alone in the room. 

The poor miller’s daughter sat there, and 
for the life of her could not think what to do. 
She had not the least idea how to turn straw 
into gold, and she became more and more 
unhappy, till at last she began to cry. Then 
all at once the door opened, and in came 
a tiny little man and said to her, “ Good 
evening, Mistress Miller; why are you cry¬ 
ing so bitterly ? ” 

“ Alas! ” answered the girl, “ I have to spin 
straw into gold, and I do not know how to 
do it.” 

“ What will you give me,” said the little 
man, “ if I spin it for you ? ” 

“ My necklace,” said the girl. 

The little man took the necklace, seated 
himself before the spinning wheel, and whirr, 
whirr, whirr, the wheel went round three 
times, and the reel was full of gold. Then 
he put on more straw, and whirr, whirr, whirr, 
the wTeel went round three turns, and the 
reel was full a second time. And so it went 



RUMPELSTILTSKIN 


3 


on till morning, when all the straw was spun 
and the reels were full of gold. 

At sunrise the King came to the room, and 
when he saw the gold he was astonished and 
delighted, but his 
heart was only 
greedy for more. 

He had the miller’s 
daughter taken into 
a still larger room 
full of straw, and 
commanded her to 
spin that, too, in 
one night, if she 
valued her life. The 
girl did not know 
what to do, and be¬ 
gan to cry; then 
the door opened as 
before, and the little 

man appeared and said, “What will you give 
me if I spin the straw into gold for you” ? 

“ I will give you the ring from my finger,” 
answered the girl. . 














4 


FAIRY TALES 


The little man took the ring, began to turn 
the wheel round with a whirr again, and by 
morning had spun all the straw into glitter¬ 
ing gold. 

The King was pleased beyond measure at 
the sight, but still he had not gold enough. 
He had the miller’s daughter taken into a 
still larger room filled with straw, and said, 
“You must spin this, too, in the course of 
the night; but if all this straw is spun into 
gold by morning, you shall be my wife.” 

“ Even though she is only a miller’s daugh¬ 
ter,” he thought to himself, “ I could not find 
a richer wife anywhere in the whole world.” 

When the girl was alone the little man 
came for the third time, and said, “What will 
you give me if I spin the straw for you this 
once more ? ” 

“ I have nothing more that I can give,” 
answered the girl. 

“ Then promise me when you are queen 
to give me your first child.” 

“ Who knows what may happen before 
that ? ” thought the miller’s daughter; and, 



RUMPELSTILTSKIN 


5 


besides, she knew no way to help herself out 
of this difficulty. So she promised the little 
man what he asked, and for that he soon 
spun the straw into gold once more. 

When the King came in the morning and 
found everything as he had wished, he took 
her in marriage, and the miller’s beautiful 
daughter became a queen. 

A year later she had a beautiful child, and 
she never gave a thought to the little man; 
but all of a sudden one day he walked into 
her room and said, “ Now give me what you 
promised.” 

The Queen was terrified, and offered the 
little man all the treasures of the kingdom if 
he would only leave her her child. 

But the little man said, “No, something 
living is dearer to me than all the treasures 
in the world.” 

Then the Oueen began to mourn and weep 
so bitterly that the little man was sorry for 
her, and said, “I will give you three days, 
and if in that time you can guess my name, 
you shall keep your child.” 



6 


FAIRY TALES 


Then the Oueen lay awake till morning, 
thinking over all the names she had ever 
heard of, and she sent a messenger over the 
country to inquire far and near any other 
names there might be. When the little 
man came the next day she began with 
Caspar, Melchior, Balthazar, and repeated 
all the names she knew; but at each one the 
little man said, “ No, that’s not my name.” 

The next day she sent to inquire the 
names of all the people in the neighbor¬ 
hood, and had a long list of the most un¬ 
common and extraordinary names for the 
little man when he came. 

“ Is your name Shortribs, perhaps, or 
Sheepshanks, or Spindleleg?” 

But he always replied, “ No, that is not 
my name.” 

The third day the messenger returned and 
reported: “ I have not been able to find any 
more new names, but on my way home, as I 
came to a high mountain on the edge of the 
forest, I saw there a little house, and before 
the house a fire was burning, and round the 



RUMPELSTILTSKIN 


7 


fire a ridiculous little man was hopping and 
dancing on one leg and crying: 

“ ‘ To-day I brew, to-morrow I bake, 

Next morning I shall the Queen’s child take; 
How glad I am that no one can dream 
That Rumpelstiltskin is my name ! ’ ” 



You can imagine how delighted the Queen 
was when she heard the name. And when 
the little man came in a little later and 




8 


FAIRY TALES 


asked, “ Now, Lady Queen, what is my 
name?” she asked first, “Is your name 
Conrad ? ” 

“ No.” 

“Is your name Henry?” 

“ No.” 

“Is your name, perhaps, Rumpelstiltskin? ” 

“ The bad fairies told you that! the bad 
fairies told you that!” screamed the little man, 
and in his rage he stamped his right foot so 
deep into the ground that his whole leg went 
in; then, in a passion, he seized his left foot 
with both hands and tore himself in two. 




DOLL-IN-TH E-GRASS 


O NCE upon a time there was a King 
who had twelve sons. When they were 
grown big he told them they must go out 
into the world to win themselves wives, but 
these wives must each be able to spin and 
weave and sew a shirt in one day, else he 
would not have them for daughters-in-law. 

To each he gave a horse and a new suit 
of clothes, and they went out into the world 
to look for their brides. When they had 
gone a little way together they said they 
would not have Boots, their youngest 
brother, with them, for he was stupid. 

So Boots had to stay behind, and he did 
not know what to do or where to turn. He 
became very downcast, and got off his horse 
and sat down in the tall grass to weep. But 
when he had sat a while, one of the tufts in 
the grass began to stir and move, and out 
of it came a little white thing. When it 

9 



IO 





























































DO LL-IN-TH E-G R ASS 


11 


came nearer, Boots saw it was a charming 
little lassie, “ such a tiny bit of a thing.” 
The lassie went up to him and asked if he 
would come down below and see “Doll-in- 
the-Grass.” 

“Yes, I’d be very happy,” he said, and 
went. 

When he got down, there sat Doll-in-the- 
Grass on a chair. She was the tiniest little 
lassie you can imagine, and very, very 
lovely. She asked Boots where he was go¬ 
ing, and what was his business. So he told 
her how there were twelve brothers of them, 
and how the King had told them each one 
must go out into the world and find him¬ 
self a wife who could spin and weave and 
sew a shirt in one day. 

“ But if you will only say at once that 
you will be my wife,” said Boots to Doll-in- 
the-Grass, “ I ’ll not go a step farther.” 

She was willing, and so she made haste 
and spun and wove and sewed the shirt, but 
it was very, very tiny. It was n’t more than 
two inches long. 



FAIRY TALES 


I 2 


Boots went off home with it, but when 
he brought it out he was almost ashamed 
of it, it was so small. But the King was 
pleased with it, and said he should have 



her. So Boots set off, glad and happy, to 
fetch his little sweetheart. 

When he came to Doll-in-the-Grass he 
wished to take her up before him on his 
horse. But she would not have that, for she 
said she would sit and drive along in a sil¬ 
ver spoon, and that she had two small white 
horses to draw her. So off they set, he on 
his horse and she in her silver spoon, and 
the two horses that drew her were two tiny 
white mice; but Boots always kept the other 












DO LL-IN-TH E-GRASS 


13 


side of the road, for he was afraid lest he 
should ride over her, she was so little. 

When they had gone a little way they 
came to a great piece of water. Here 
Boots’s horse got frightened, and shied 
across the road and upset the spoon, and 
Doll-in-the-Grass tumbled into the water. 
Then Boots was in great distress, for he did 
not know how to get her out again; but in 
a little while up came a merman with her, 
and now she was as tall and well grown as 
other men and women, and far lovelier than 
she had been before. So he took her up 
before him on his horse, and rode home. 

All Boots’s brothers had come back with 
their sweethearts, but none had woven so 
dainty a little shirt as Doll-in-the-Grass, and 
none were half so lovely. When the brothers 
saw her they were as jealous as jealous could 
be of their brother; but the King was so 
delighted with her that he gave them a fine 
wedding feast, and had them live with him 
in his palace, and he gave out word that 
they should follow him on the throne. 



HOW TO TELL A REAL PRINCESS 


HERE was once a prince who wanted 



JL to marry a princess. But she must be a 
real princess, mind you. So he traveled all 
around the world to find one, but everywhere 
there was always something in the way. Not 
that there was any lack of princesses, but 
whether they were real princesses he could 
not seem to make out; there was always 
something that did not seem quite- right. 
So home he came, quite out of spirits, for he 
did wish so much to have a real princess. 

One evening a terrible storm came on. 
It thundered and lightened, and the rain 
poured down in torrents; indeed, it was a 
fearful night. In the midst of it there came 
a knocking at the palace gate, and the old 
king went out to open it. 

It was a princess who stood outside. But, 
oh, dear! what a state she was in from the 
rain and storm ! The water was streaming 


HOW TO TELL A REAL PRINCESS 15 


from her hair and clothes; it ran in at 
the tips of her shoes and out at the heels; 
yet she insisted she was a real princess. 



“ Very well,” thought the old queen; “that 
we shall presently see.” She said nothing, 
but she went into the bedroom and took 













































































































































i6 


FAIRY TALES 


off all the bedding, and then laid a pea 
on the framework of the bedstead. Hav¬ 
ing done this, she took twenty mattresses 
and laid them upon the pea, and twenty 
eider-down quilts on top of the mattresses. 

The princess lay upon this bed all night. In 
the morning she was asked how she had slept. 

“Oh, miserably!” said the princess. “I 
scarcely closed my eyes the whole night 
through. I’m sure I don’t know what was 
in the bed. I lay upon something so hard 
that I am black and blue all over from it. 
It is dreadful! ” 

Now they knew at once that she was a 
real princess, since through twenty mattresses 
and through twenty eider-down quilts she 
had felt the pea. None but a real princess 
could be so sensitive. 

So the prince took her for his wife, for he 
knew that at last in her he had found a real 
princess. And the pea was put in the Royal 
Museum, where it is still to be seen unless 
some one has stolen it. 

And this, mind you, is a true story. 



THE FROG PRINCE 


I N olden times there lived a King whose 
daughters were all beautiful, but the 
youngest was so lovely that the sun him¬ 
self wondered at her beauty every time he 
looked into her face. 

Near to the King’s castle lay a dark, 
gloomy forest; and in the forest, under an 
old linden tree, was a fountain. When the 
day was very hot the King’s daughter used 
to go into the wood and sit down by the 
side of the cool fountain. Her favorite 
amusement, as she sat there, was to toss a 
golden ball up into the air and catch it 
again. Once she threw it so high that, 
instead of falling into the hand that she 
stretched out for it, it dropped upon the 
ground and rolled straight into the water. 

The King’s daughter followed it with her 
eyes as long as she could, but it disappeared, 
for the well was so deep that she could not 


18 


FAIRY TALES 


see the bottom. Then she began to cry 
bitterly for her ball. 

As she sat weeping she heard a voice call¬ 
ing: “What is the matter, King’s daughter? 
Your tears would touch the heart of a stone.” 

She looked round towards the spot whence 
the voice came and saw a frog stretching 
his thick, ugly head out of the water. 

“ Oh, it is you, is it, old water-paddler! ” 
she said. “Well, then, I am crying for the 
loss of my golden ball which has fallen into 
the fountain.” 

“ Then do not cry any more,” answered 
the frog; “ I can get it for you. But what 
will you give me if I bring back your play¬ 
thing to you ? ” 

“ Oh, anything you like, dear frog! ” she 
said. “ My dresses, my pearls and jewels, 
even the golden crown I wear.” 

“No,” answered the frog, “your clothes, 
your pearls and jewels, or even your golden 
crown are nothing to me; but if you will 
love me and let me be your companion and 
playfellow, sit by you at table, eat from your 



THE FROG PRINCE 


19 


little golden plate, drink out of your cup, 
and sleep in your little bed, — if you will 
promise me all this, then I will bring you 



back your golden ball from the bottom of 
the fountain.” 

“ Oh, yes,” she replied, “ I promise you 
anything if you will only bring me back 
my ball! ” 

She was thinking to herself all this while: 
“What nonsense the silly frog does talk! 
He lives in the water with other frogs, 

















20 


FAIRY TALES 


and croaks, and cannot be anybody’s play¬ 
fellow.” 

But the frog, as soon as he had received 
the promise, ducked his head under the 
water and sank down to the bottom. In a 
little while he came up again with the ball 
in his mouth, and threw it on the grass. 
The King’s daughter was full of joy when 
she saw her pretty plaything again, and, 
catching it up, ran off with it. 

“Wait! wait!” cried the frog. “Take me 
with you; I cannot run as fast as you.” 

But the young Princess would not listen 
to the frog’s croaking, but ran home and 
soon forgot the poor frog, who had to go 
back to his fountain again. 

The next day, when the Princess was sit¬ 
ting at table with the King and his courtiers 
and eating out of her little golden plate, 
there came a sound of something creeping 
up the marble staircase, splish , splash , splish, 
splash , and presently there came a knock at 
the door, and a voice crying, “ Youngest 
King’s daughter, open to me.” 



THE FROG PRINCE 


2 I 

She ran to see who was outside; but 
when she opened the door and saw the frog 
she shut it again in great haste and sat down 
at the table looking very much frightened. 
The King, seeing that his daughter was 



alarmed, said to her: “My child, what is 
the matter? Is there a giant outside at the 
door, wanting to carry you off ? ” 

“ Oh, no ! ” she replied ; “ it is no giant,— 
only a great ugly frog.” 

“ A frog! What can he want with you, 
my daughter ? ” 

“ Yesterday when I was playing with my 
golden ball by the fountain in the forest it fell 
into the water, and because I cried the frog 










22 


FAIRY TALES 


brought it out for me, and he made me promise 
that he should come here and be my com¬ 
panion ; but I never thought he could get 
out of the water to come. And now he is 
outside there, and wants to come in to me.” 

Just then he knocked at the door a second 
time, and called: 

“ Youngest King’s daughter, 

Open to me. 

Do you not know 

What you promised me, 

Yesterday 

Under the linden tree? 

Youngest King’s daughter, 

Open to me.” 

Then the King said: “ My daughter, what 
you have promised, you must do. Go and 
open the door for him.” 

She went and opened the door, and the 
frog hopped after her, close to her feet, and 
quite up to her chair. There he sat and 
cried, “ Lift me up beside you.” 

She hesitated, till the King commanded 
her to do it. 



THE FROG PRINCE 


23 


When the frog was on the table he said, 
“ Now push your little plate nearer to me, 
and we will eat together.” 

She did it, but it was easy to see that she 
did not do it willingly. The frog seemed 
to enjoy his dinner very much, but every 



mouthful she ate choked her. At last he 
said, “ I have eaten enough, and am tired ; 
now -carry me to your little room, and make 
your silken bed ready, that we may sleep 
together.” 

The King’s daughter began to cry, for she 
was afraid of the cold frog. She did not 
like to touch him, and now he wanted to 
sleep in her beautiful, neat little bed. 





















24 


FAIRY TALES 


But the King was displeased at her tears, 
and said, “He who helped you when you 
were in trouble must not be despised now.” 

So she took up the frog with two fingers, 
carried him upstairs, and put him in a cor¬ 
ner of her room. 

When she got into bed he crept up to 
her and said: “I am tired, and I want to 
go to sleep too. Lift me up, or I will tell 
your father.” 

Then she was very angry, and picked 
him up and threw him with all her strength 
against the wall, saying, “ Now will you be 
quiet, you ugly frog ? ” 

But as he fell, how surprised she was to 
see the frog change into a handsome young 
Prince with beautiful, friendly eyes ! He told 
her how he had been bewitched by a wicked 
fairy, and how no one could have released 
him from the spell but herself. He now 
became, by her father’s will, her dear com¬ 
panion and her husband. 

The young Prince wanted to take her to 
his own kingdom. So on the wedding day 



THE FROG PRINCE 


25 


a splendid carriage drawn by eight white 
horses with white plumes on their heads and 
golden harness drove up to the door. Behind 
it stood the servant of the young Prince, the 
faithful Henry. This faithful Henry had been 
so unhappy when his master was changed 
into a frog that he had bound three iron 
bands round his heart to keep it from break¬ 
ing with grief and sorrow. 

The carriage with the Prince and his bride 
soon drove away, with Henry behind. They 
had only gone a little way when the Prince 
heard a loud crack behind him, as if some¬ 
thing had broken. He turned round, and 
cried, “ Henry, the carriage is breaking! ” 

“No, sir,” he replied, “it is not the car¬ 
riage, but only the iron bands which I 
bound round my heart for fear it should 
break with sorrow while you were a frog 
confined in the fountain. They are breaking 
now because of my happiness.” 

The Prince and Princess never forgot 
faithful Henry, who had loved his master 
so well while he was in trouble. 



CINDERELLA 


HERE was once a gentleman who took 



X for his second wife the proudest and 
most haughty lady that was ever seen. She 
had two daughters who were exactly like 
her in character, as in everything else. The 
gentleman had likewise a young daughter, 
but of uncommon sweetness and gentleness 
of disposition, which she took from her 
mother, who was the best person in the 
world. 

The wedding was hardly over when the 
stepmother began to give full vent to her 
bad temper. She could not bear this young 
girl, whose good qualities made her own 
daughters appear even more hateful in con¬ 
trast. She gave her the meanest work in the 
house to do: it was she who washed the 
dishes and tables, and scrubbed the stairs, 
and cleaned the chambers of madam and 
her young lady daughters. She slept at the 


CINDERELLA 


27 


top of the house in a garret, on a miserable 
straw bed, while her sisters were in rooms 
with inlaid floors, where they had beds of 
the newest fashion, and mirrors in which 
they could see themselves from head to foot. 

All this the poor girl bore patiently. 
She dared not complain to her father, who 



would only have reproved her, for his wife 
governed him entirely. When she had done 
her work she used to go into the chimney 
corner and sit among the cinders; so they 
commonly called her “ Cinder-wench.” The 
younger sister, who was not so rude and 
uncivil as the elder, called her “ Cinderella.” 
But Cinderella, for all her mean dress, was 












28 


FAIRY TALES 


still a hundred times more beautiful than 
her sisters, although they were always dressed 
magnificently. 

It happened that the King’s son gave a 
ball, to which he invited all persons of 
fashion. Our two young ladies were invited, 
for they were people of distinction in the 
country. They were much delighted and 
were absorbed in selecting the gowns and 
headdresses which would best become them. 
Here was fresh trial for Cinderella, for it was 
she who ironed her sisters’ linen and starched 
their ruffles. All day long they talked of 
nothing but how they should be dressed. 

“ For my part,” said the elder, “ I will wear 
my red velvet dress with French trimmings.” 

“ And I,” said the younger, “ shall have 
only my ordinary skirt; but to make amends 
for that I shall wear my gold-flowered mantle 
and my diamond necklace, which are very 
far from being ordinary.” 

They sent for the best hairdresser to 
arrange their hair in the most stylish way, 
and bought patches for their cheeks from 



CINDERELLA 


29 


the most fashionable maker. They called 
in Cinderella to consult with them, for she 
had good taste. She gave them the best 
advice she could, and even offered to ar¬ 
range their headdresses, a proposal which 
they were very ready to accept. 

While she was doing this they said to 
her, “ Cinderella, should you not like to go 
to the ball ? ” 

“ Ah ! ” replied Cinderella, “ you mock me ! 
It is not for me to go to balls.” 

“You are right,” said they; “people might 
well larmh to see a cinder-wench at a ball.” 

O 

Any one but Cinderella might have left 
their hair awry, but she was good-humored 
and did it to perfection. 

For almost two days they scarcely ate 
anything, so transported were they with joy. 
They broke a dozen or more laces by draw¬ 
ing them too tight in their efforts to make 
themselves look as slender as possible, and 
they spent all their time before the mirror. 

At last the happy day came; they de¬ 
parted, and Cinderella followed them with 



30 


FAIRY TALES 


her eyes as long as she could. When 
she could see them no longer she began 
to cry. 

Her godmother, seeing her in tears, asked 
her what was the matter. 

“ I wish — I w-i-s-h ” : — but she could 
not finish for weeping. 

Her godmother, who was a fairy, said to 
her, “You wish you could go to the ball, do 

you not ?” 

“ Alas, yes ! ” said 
Cinderella, sighing. 

“ Well,” said her god¬ 
mother, “ be a good girl, 
and I will see to it that 
you go.” 

She led her into her 
chamber, and said to 
her, “ Run into the garden, my child, and 
fetch me a pumpkin.” 

Cinderella went at once to pick the finest 
she could find, although she could not im¬ 
agine how this pumpkin could help her to 
go to the ball. 











CINDERELLA 


3 1 

Her godmother scooped out the inside, 
leaving nothing but the rind; then she 
struck it with her wand, and the pumpkin 
immediately became a beautiful gilded coach. 

She then went to look into the mouse 
trap, where she found six mice, all alive. 
She told Cinderella to lift the door of the 
trap, and as each mouse passed out the 
godmother gave it a little tap with her 
wand and it was turned into a fine horse. 
The six made a splendid team of six horses 
of a fine dapple-gray mouse color. 

While she was wondering what she should 
do for a coachman, Cinderella said, “ I will 
run and see if there is not a rat in the rat 
trap; we will turn him into a coachman.” 

“You are right,” said her godmother; 
“go and look.” 

Cinderella brought the trap to her, and 
in it there were three huge rats. The fairy 
chose the one which had the largest beard, 
and, touching him with her wand, turned 
him into an imposing coachman with the 
finest mustache and whiskers ever seen. 




32 


FAIRY TALES 


Then she said to Cinderella, “ Go^ into 
the garden and you will find six lizards be¬ 
hind the watering pot; bring them to me.” 

She had no sooner done this than her 
godmother changed them into six footmen, 
who jumped up at once behind the coach in 
their laced liveries, and held on as if they 
had done nothing else all their lives. 

The fairy then said to Cinderella, “ Well, 
here is something in which to go to the 
ball; are you not pleased with it?” 

“Yes; but am I to go like this, — in 
these miserable rags?” 

Her godmother simply touched her with 
her wand, and in the same instant her 
clothes were changed into apparel of cloth 
of gold and silver, all decked with jewels. 
Then she gave her a pair of the prettiest 
glass slippers in the world. Thus attired, 
she got into the carriage. Her godmother 
charged her on no account to stay beyond 
midnight, and warned her that, if she stayed 
one moment longer, her coach would be¬ 
come a pumpkin again, her horses mice, her 







33 
















































































34 


FAIRY TALES 


footmen lizards, and her clothes just as they 
were before. She promised her godmother 
that she would not fail to leave' the ball 
before midnight, and set off, almost beside 
herself with joy. 

The King’s son, when he was told that 
a great Princess, whom nobody knew, had 
arrived, ran out to receive her; he gave her 
his hand as she alighted from the coach 
and conducted her to the hall where the 
company was assembled. A deep silence 
at once fell upon every one; they stopped 
dancing and the violins ceased to play, so 
taken up was every one with gazing at the 
marvelous beauty of this unknown arrival. 
Nothing was heard but the confused mur¬ 
mur of voices saying, “ Ah! how beautiful 
she is! ” 

The King himself, old as he was, could not 
keep his eyes off her, and whispered to the 
Queen that it was a long time since he had 
seen so beautiful and so lovely a creature. 

All the ladies were taken up with studying 
her headdress and her costume, in order to 



CINDERELLA 


/ 


35 


have some made for themselves after the same 
pattern the next day, — provided they could 
find materials which would be fine enough 
and work-people clever enough to make them. 

The King’s son conducted her to the seat 
of honor, and soon took her out to dance 
with him. She danced with such grace that 
every one admired her still more. A fine 
collation was served, but the young Prince 
was so absorbed in gazing at her that he 
did not touch a morsel. 

She seated herself beside her sisters and 
showed them a thousand courtesies, sharing 
with them, among other things, the oranges 
and citrons which the Prince had presented 
to her. This astonished them very much, 
for they did not know her. 

While they were conversing together 
Cinderella heard the clock strike a quarter 
to twelve. She rose at once, courtesied to 
the company, and hastened away as fast as 
she could. 

As soon as she got home she ran to find 
her godmother, and, after having thanked 



36 


FAIRY TALES 


her, told her how much she wished to go to 
the ball the next day, because the King’s son 
had begged her to come. While she was tell¬ 
ing her godmother all that had happened at 
the ball her two sisters knocked at the door. 

Cinderella opened it. “ How long you 
have stayed! ” she said, yawning, rubbing 
her eyes, and stretching herself as if she 
had just been awakened. (She had not, 
however, had any great desire for sleep 
since they left her.) 

“ If you had been at the ball,” said one 
of her sisters, “ you would not have been 
sleepy or bored. There came thither the 
most beautiful Princess, the very loveliest 
ever seen ; she paid us a thousand atten¬ 
tions, and gave us oranges and citrons.” 

Cinderella asked the name of this Prin¬ 
cess, but they replied that no one knew it; 
that the King’s son was very much dis¬ 
turbed by this, and would give anything in 
the world to know who she was. 

Cinderella smiled and said: “How very 
beautiful she must be! How fortunate you 



CINDERELLA 


37 


are! Could I not see her ? Ah, clear Miss 
Charlotte, clo lend me the yellow gown that 
you wear every day! ” 

“ Indeed ! ” said Charlotte, “ I should think 
so! Lend my dress to a dirty cinder-wench 
like you ! I must be out of my mind in¬ 
deed if I would do that.” 

Cinderella expected this refusal and was 
very glad of it, for she would have been 
greatly embarrassed if her sister had been 
willing to lend her the gown. 

The next day the two sisters went to the 
ball, and so did Cinderella, but dressed 
much more magnificently than before. The 
King’s son was always by her side, and 
made all manner of pretty speeches to her. 
The young lady was far from being wearied 
by them, and completely forgot her god¬ 
mother’s commands, so that she heard the 
clock begin to strike twelve when she had 
no idea that it was even eleven o’clock yet. 
She rose at once, and fled as nimbly as a 
deer. The Prince followed, but could not 
overtake her; but she dropped one of her 



38 


FAIRY TALES 


glass slippers, which he picked up very 
carefully. 

Cinderella reached home quite out of 
breath, without either coach or footmen, and 
in her old clothes, having nothing left of all 



her finery but one of her little glass slippers, 
the mate of the one which she had dropped. 
The guards at the palace gates were ques¬ 
tioned as to whether they had not seen a 
princess go out, and they replied that they 
had seen no one go out but a little ragged 











CINDERELLA 


39 


girl who looked more like a peasant than a 
princess. 

When her two sisters returned from the 
ball Cinderella asked them if they had had 
a good time, and if the beautiful lady was 
there. They told her Yes, but that she had 
hurried away as the clock struck twelve, 
and in such great haste that she had 
dropped one of her little glass slippers, the 
prettiest in the world. They told, too, how 
the Prince had picked it up, and how he 
had done nothing but look at it all the rest 
of the evening, and agreed that he was 
undoubtedly very much in love with the 
beautiful owner of the little slipper. 

They spoke truly, for a few days after, 
the Prince had it proclaimed, at the sound 
of the trumpet, that he would marry her 
whose foot this slipper fitted exactly. They 
began to try it on the princesses, then on 
the duchesses, and then on all the ladies of 
the court, but to no purpose. They brought 
it to the two sisters, and each one did all 
she possibly could to squeeze a foot into the 



40 


FAIRY TALES 


slipper; but neither could manage to do it. 
Cinderella, who was watching them and 
recognized her slipper, said laughingly, “ Let 
me see if it will not fit me! ” 

Her sisters burst out laughing, and made 
fun of her. The gentleman who was trying 
on the slipper looked at her earnestly, and 
finding her very beautiful, said that it was 
but fair she should try, and that he had 
orders to let every young lady try it on. 
He made Cinderella sit down, and putting 
the slipper to her little foot, he saw that it 
slipped on easily and fitted like wax. 

The astonishment of the two sisters was 
great, but it was even greater when Cinder¬ 
ella pulled from her pocket the other little 
slipper and put it on her foot. Thereupon 
in came her godmother, who, touching Cin¬ 
derella’s clothes with her wand, made them 
become more magnificent than those which 
she had worn before. 

Now her sisters recognized her as the 
beautiful stranger whom they had seen at 
the ball. They threw themselves at her feet 



CINDERELLA 


41 


and asked her forgiveness for all the ill 
treatment she had received from.them. Cin¬ 
derella raised them up and, embracing them, 
said that she forgave them with all her heart, 
and begged them to love her always. 

She was conducted to the young Prince, 
dressed as she was. He found her more 
beautiful than ever, and a few days later 
married her. Cinderella, who was as good 
as she was beautiful, gave her two sisters 
apartments in the palace, and married them 
that same day to two great lords of the 
court. 













HANS IN LUCK 


H ANS had served his master seven years, 
and at the end of that time he said to 
him, “Master, my time is up; now I should 
like to go home to my mother, so give me 
my wages, if you please.” 

His master answered, “You have served 
me faithfully and well, and as the service 
has been, so shall the wages be ”; and he 
gave him a lump of gold as big as his head. 

Hans pulled his handkerchief out of his 
pocket, wrapped the lump in it, slung it 
over his shoulder, and set out on the 
way home. 

As he was trudging painstakingly and 
laboriously along the road a horseman came 
in sight, trotting gayly and briskly along 
on a spirited horse. 

“Ah,” said Hans aloud, “what a fine 
thing riding is! There.you sit as comfort¬ 
able as in a chair; you stumble over no 

42 


HANS IN LUCK 


43 


stones, you save your shoes, and you get 
over the ground you hardly know how.” 

The horseman, overhearing him, stopped 
and said, “ Halloo, Hans! Why do you go 
on foot then ? ” 

“ I can’t help it,” answered Hans, “ for I 
have this bundle to carry home. It is gold, to 



be sure, but I cannot hold my head straight 
for it, and it hurts my shoulder, too.” 

“ I will tell you what,” said the horseman, 
“ we will exchange. I will give you my 
horse, and you shall give me your lump. 






44 


FAIRY TALES 


“With all my heart,” said Hans; “but I 
tell you beforehand that you are taking a 
good heavy load on yourself.” 

The horseman got down, took the gold, 
and helped Hans up, putting the bridle 
into his hands, and said, “ Now, when 
you want to go at a really good pace, you 
must click your tongue and cry, ‘ Gee up! 

i j 

gee up! 

Hans was delighted when he found him¬ 
self sitting on a horse and riding along so 
freely and easily. After a while it occurred 
to him that he might go still faster, and he 
began to click with his tongue and cry, 
“ Gee up ! gee up ! ” The horse broke into a 
gallop, and before Hans knew what he was 
about he was thrown off and was lying in 
a ditch which separated the fields from the 
highroad. The horse would have run away 
if it had not been stopped by a peasant who 
was coming along the road and driving a 
cow before him. Hans felt himself all over, 
and picked himself up; but he was vexed, 
and said to the peasant: “This riding on 



HANS IN LUCK 


45 


horseback is no joke, I can tell you, espe¬ 
cially when a man gets on a mare like mine, 
that kicks and throws one off, so that it is 
a wonder one’s neck is not broken. Never 
again will I ride that animal! Now I like 
your cow; you can walk quietly along be¬ 
hind her, and you have her milk, butter, 
and cheese, every day, into the bargain. 
What would I not give for such a cow! ” 

“Well, now,” said the peasant, “if it 
would give you as much pleasure as all 
that, I don’t mind exchanging the cow for 
the horse.” 

Hans agreed to this with the greatest 
delight, and the peasant, swinging himself 
upon the horse, rode off in a hurry. 

Hans drove his cow peacefully before 
him, and thought over his lucky bargain. 
“ If I only have a bit of bread — and I ought 
never to be without that — I can have but¬ 
ter and cheese with it as often as I like; 
if I am thirsty, I have only to milk the cow 
and I have milk to drink. What more could 


heart desire ? ” 



46 


FAIRY TALES 


When he came to an inn he made a 
halt, and ate with great satisfaction all 
the bread he had brought with him for 
dinner and supper, and spent his last two 
farthings for a glass of beer to drink with 
it. Then he drove his cow along in the 
direction of his mothers village. The heat 
grew more and more oppressive as the mid¬ 
dle of the day drew near, and Hans found 
himself on a wide heath which it would 
take about an hour to cross. He was very 
hot and thirsty. 

“ This is easily remedied,” thought Hans; 
“ I will milk the cow and refresh myself 
with the milk.” 

He tied her to a tree, and as he had no 
pail he put his leather cap underneath her; 
but try as hard as he could, not a drop of 
milk came. He had put himself in a very 
awkward position, too, and at last the impa¬ 
tient beast gave him such a kick on the 
head that he tumbled over on the ground 
and was so dazed that for a long time he 
could not think where he was. 



HANS IN LUCK 


47 


Fortunately a butcher came along soon, 
trundling a wheelbarrow in which lay a 
young pig. 

“ What’s the matter here ? ” he cried, as 
he helped Hans up. 

Hans told him what had happened. The 
butcher handed him his flask and said: 



“There, take a drink; it will do you good. 
That cow might well give no milk; she is 
an old beast, and only fit at best for the 
plow or for the butcher.” 

“Dear, dear!” said Hans, running his 
fingers through his hair, “ who would have 

o o 









4 8 


FAIRY TALES 


thought it! It is an idea to kill the beast and 
have the meat. But I do not care much for 
beef, — it is not juicy enough. Now a young 
pig like yours, — that is what would taste 
good; and then there are the sausages! ” 

“Take heed, Hans,” said the butcher; 
“ out of love for you I will exchange and let 
you have the pig for the cow.” 

“ May Heaven reward you for your kind¬ 
ness! ” cried Hans, handing over the cow 
as the butcher untied the pig from the bar- 
row and put into his hand the string with 
which it was tied. 

Hans went on again, thinking how every¬ 
thing was turning out just as he wished; if 
he did meet with any mishap, it was im¬ 
mediately set right. Presently a lad over¬ 
took him who was carrying a fine white 
goose under his arm. They said “ Good 
morning ” to each other, and then Hans 
began at once to tell of his good luck and 
how he always made such good bargains. 
The lad told him that he was taking the 
goose to a christening feast. 





49 


























50 FAIRY TALES 

“Just lift it,” said he to Hans, holding it 
up by the wings, “ and feel how heavy it is; 
it has been fattened up for the last eight 
weeks. Whoever gets a taste of it when it 
is roasted will get a rare bit.” 

“Yes,” said Hans, weighing it in one 
hand, “ it is a good weight, but my pig is 
no trifle either.” 

Meanwhile the lad kept looking suspi¬ 
ciously from one side to the other and shook 
his head. 

“ Look here,” he began, “ I ’m not so sure 
it’s all right with your pig. In the village 
through which I passed, the mayor himself 
had just had one stolen from his sty. I fear 
— I fear you have got hold of it there in 
your hand. They have sent out people to 
look for it, and it would be a bad busi¬ 
ness for you if you were found with it; at 
the very least, you would be shut up in 
the dark hole.” 

Honest Hans was very much frightened. 

“ Alas! ” he said, “ help me out of this 
trouble! You are more at home in these 



HANS IN LUCK 


51 


parts than I; take my pig and let me have 
your goose.” 

“ I shall run some risk if I do,” answered 
the lad, “ but I will not be the cause of your 
getting into trouble.” 

So he took the cord in his hand and 
drove the pig quickly away by a side path. 

Honest Hans, relieved of his anxiety, plod¬ 
ded along towards home with the goose under 
his arm. “ When I really come to think it 
over,” he said to himself, “ I have even gained 
by this exchange: first, there is the good 
roast; then the quantity of fat that will drip 
out of it in roasting and will keep us in 
goose fat to eat on our bread for a quarter 
of a year; and last of all there are the fine 
white feathers, with which I will stuff my 
pillow, and then I warrant I shall sleep like 
a top. How delighted my mother will be ! ” 

As he was going through the last village 
he came to a knife grinder with his cart, 
singing, as his wheel whirred busily around, 

“ Scissors and knives I quickly grind, 

While my coat flies out in the wind behind.” 



5 2 


FAIRY TALES 


Hans stopped to watch him; at last he 
spoke to him and said, “ You appear to have 
a good business, if I may judge by your 
merry song.” 

“Yes,” answered the knife grinder, “this 
business has a golden bottom. A good 
grinder finds money in his pocket whenever 
he puts his hand in it. But where did you 
buy that fine goose ? ” 

“ I did not buy it, but took it in exchange 
for my pig.'’ 

“ And the pig ? ” 

“ That I got for a cow.” 

“ And the cow ? ” 

“ I took that for a horse.” 

“ And the horse ? ” 

“ For that I gave a lump of gold as big as 
my head.” 

“ And the gold ? ” 

“ Oh, that was my wages for seven years’ 
service! ” 

“You have certainly known how to look 
after yourself each time,” said the grinder. 
“ If you can only get on so far as to hear 



HANS IN LUCK 


53 • 


the money jingle in your pockets whenever 
you stand up, you will indeed have made 
your fortune.” 

“ H ow shall I manage that?” said Hans. 



“You must become a grinder, like me; 
nothing in particular is needed for it but a 
grindstone, — everything else will come of 
itself. I have one of those here; to be sure 
it is a little worn, but you need not give me 
anything for it but your goose. Will you 
do it ? ” 

“ How can you ask? ” said Hans. “ Why, 
I shall be the luckiest man in the world. 




















* 54 


FAIRY TALES 


If I have money every time I put my hand 
into my pocket, what more can I have to 
trouble about ? ” 

So he handed him the goose and took the 
grindstone in exchange. 

“ Now,” said the grinder, picking up an 
ordinary big stone that lay by the road, 
“ here is another good stone into the bar¬ 
gain. You can hammer out all your old 
nails on it and straighten them. Take it 
with you and keep it carefully.” 

Hans shouldered the stones and walked 
on with a light heart, his eyes shining with 
joy. “ I must have been born under a lucky 
star,” he exclaimed ; “ everything happens to 
me just as I want it.” 

Meanwhile, as he had been on his legs 
since daybreak, he began to feel tired. He 
was hungry, too, for in his joy at the bargain 
by which he got his cow he had eaten up all 
his store of food at once, and had had none 
since. At last he felt quite unable to go 
farther, and was forced to rest every minute 
or two. Besides, the stones weighed him 



HANS IN LUCK 


55 


down dreadfully. He could not help think¬ 
ing how nice it would be if he did not have 
to carry them any farther. 

He dragged himself slowly over to a well 
in the field, meaning to rest and refresh 
himself with a draft of cool water. To keep 
the stones from hurting him while he knelt 
to drink, he laid them carefully on the edge 
of the well. Then he sat down, and was 
about to stoop and drink, but made a slip 
which gave the stones a little push, and 
both of them rolled off into the water. 
When Hans saw them sinking to the bot¬ 
tom he jumped for joy, and knelt down 
and thanked God, with tears in his eyes, 
for having shown him this further favor, 
and relieved him of the heavy stones (which 
were the only things that troubled him) 
without his having anything to reproach 
himself with. 

“ There is no man under the sun so lucky 
as I,” he cried out. Then with a light heart, 
and free from every burden, he ran on until 
he reached his mother’s home. 



DIAMONDS AND TOADS 


NCE upon a time there was a widow 



who had two daughters. The elder 
was so much like her, both in looks and in 
character, that whoever saw the daughter 
saw the mother. They were both so disa¬ 
greeable and so proud that there was no 
living with them. The younger, who was 
the image of her father in courtesy and 
sweetness of temper, was one of the most 
beautiful girls ever seen. As people natur¬ 
ally love those who are like them, this 
mother doted upon her elder daughter, and 
at the same time conceived a great aversion 
to the younger. She made her eat in the 
kitchen and work continually. 

Among other things, the poor child had 
to go twice a day to draw water more 
than a mile and a half from the house, and 
bring home a large pitcherful of it. One 
day when she was at the fountain a poor 


DIAMONDS AND TOADS 


57 


woman came to her and asked her to let 
her drink. 

“ Oh, yes! with all my heart, Goody,” said 
the pretty little girl. Rinsing the pitcher at 
once, she filled it at the clearest part of the 
fountain and gave it to her, holding up the 



pitcher all the while, that she might drink 
the more easily. 

Then the good woman said to her, “You 
are so pretty, so good, and so courteous, 
that I cannot help giving you a gift.” 

For this was a fairy, who had taken the 
form of a poor countrywoman to see how 
far the civility and good manilers of this 
young girl would go. 









58 


FAIRY TALES 


“ I will give you for a gift,” continued 
the fairy, “ that at every word you speak 
there shall come out of your mouth either a 
flower or a jewel.” 

When this pretty girl got home, her 
mother scolded her for staying so long at 
the fountain. 

“ I ask your pardon, mamma,” said the poor 
girl, “ for not making more haste ” ; and as she 
spoke these words there fell from her lips 
three roses, three pearls, and four diamonds. 

“ What do I see here ? ” said the mother, 
quite astonished. “ I think I see pearls and 
diamonds come out of the girl’s mouth. 
H ow happens this, my child ? ” 

This was the first time she had ever 
called her “ my child.” 

The girl told her frankly all that had 
happened to her, dropping from her mouth 
great numbers of diamonds as she spoke. 

“ Really,” cried the mother, “ I must send 
my own dear daughter thither. Fanny! 
Fanny! look! see what comes out of your 
sister’s mouth when she speaks ! Would you 



DIAMONDS AND TOADS 


59 


not like, my dear, to have the same gift ? You 
have only to go and draw water at the foun¬ 
tain, and when a poor woman asks you to let 
her drink, to give it to her very civilly.” 

“ I should like to see myself going to the 
fountain to draw water,” said this ill-bred 
minx. 

“ I insist that you go,” said the mother, 
“ and that at once.” 

So away she went, faking with her the 
best silver tankard in the house, but grum¬ 
bling all the way. 

She no sooner reached the fountain than 
she saw coming out of the wood a lady, 
magnificently dressed, who came up to her 
and asked for a drink. 

This w^as the same fairy who had appeared 
to her sister, but she had now taken the air 
and the dress of a princess, to see how far 
this girl’s rudeness would go. 

“ Am I come here,” said the ill-bred, saucy 
girl, “ to serve you with water, pray ? I 
suppose this silver tankard was brought 
wholly on purpose for your ladyship, was 



6o 


FAIRY TALES 


it? I should think so! You must drink 
out of the fountain, if you want any.” 

“You are hardly polite,” answered the 
fairy, without putting herself in a passion. 
“Well, then, since you are so disobliging, I 
give you for a gift, that at every word you 
speak there shall come out of your mouth 
a snake or a toad.” 

As soon as her mother saw her coming, 
she cried out, “ Well, daughter?” 

“ Well, mother,” answered the rude girl, 
throwing out of her mouth a viper and a toad. 

“ Oh, mercy! ” cried the mother, “ what 
is this I see? It is her sister who is the 
cause of all this, but she shall pay for it ”; 
and immediately she ran to beat her. 

The poor child fled away from her and 
went to hide herself in the forest near by. 
The King’s son, as he was returning from 
hunting, met her, and seeing how beautiful 
she was, asked her what she was doing there 
all alone, and why she was crying. 

“ Alas, sir, my mother has turned me out 
of doors! ” 



DIAMONDS AND TOADS 61 

The King’s son, seeing five or six pearls 
and as many diamonds fall from her mouth, 
desired her to tell him how that happened. 
Then she told him the whole story. 

The King’s son fell in love with her, and, 
considering that such a gift was worth more 
than any marriage portion any one else 



could bring, conducted her to the palace of 
the King, his father, and there married her. 

As for her sister, she made herself so 
much hated that her own mother turned 
her out of doors. The miserable girl, after 
wandering about without finding any one 
who would take her in, went away to a 
corner of the wood and there died. 







PUSS IN BOOTS 

O NCE upon a time there was a miller 
who, when he died, had nothing to 
leave to his three sons but his mill, his ass, 
and his cat. The division was soon made. 
Neither the notary nor the attorney were 
sent for; they would soon have eaten up 
all the poor patrimony. The eldest had the 
mill, the second the ass, and the youngest 
nothing but the cat. 

The youngest was quite downcast at hav¬ 
ing so poor a share. 


62 

























PUSS IN BOOTS 


6 3 


“ My brothers,” said he, “ may get their 
living handsomely enough by joining their 
portions together; but as for me, when I 
have eaten my cat and made me a muff of 
his skin, I must die of hunger.” 

The cat, who heard all this without ap¬ 
pearing to do so, came up to him and said 
with a grave and serious air, “.Do not thus 
afflict yourself, my good master; you have 
only to give me a bag, and get a pair of 
boots made for me, — that I may scamper 
through the dirt and the brambles, — and 
you shall see that you have not so poor a 
portion in me as you imagine.” 

Though the cat’s master did not build 
great hopes on what he said, yet he had seen 
him play such cunning tricks to catch rats 
and mice, — such as hanging himself by his 
heels, or hiding himself in the meal to make 
believe he was dead, — that he did not alto¬ 
gether despair of his helping him in his 
misery. When the cat had what he asked 
for, he booted himself very gallantly, and 
putting his bag about his neck, he took hold 





64 


FAIRY TALES 


of the two strings with his fore paws, and 
went into a warren where there were a 
great many rabbits. He put bran and pars¬ 
ley into his bag, and stretching himself 
out at full length as if he were dead, he 
waited for some young rabbits, not yet ac¬ 
quainted with the snares and tricks of this 
world, to come and rummage his bag for 
what he had put into it. 

Scarcely had he lain down before his 
wish was fulfilled. A rash and foolish young 
rabbit jumped headlong into his bag, and 
Master Puss immediately drew close the 
strings, and killed him without mercy. Proud 
of his prey, he went with it to the palace 
and asked to speak with the King. He was 
shown upstairs into the King’s apartment, 
and making a low bow, said to him: “ I have 
brought you, sire, a rabbit from the warren 
of my Lord the Marquis of Carabas [for 
that was the title which he was pleased to 
give his master], which he has commanded 
me to present to your Majesty with the 
assurance of his respect.” 



PUSS IN BOOTS 


65 


“Tell your master,” said the King, “that 
I thank him, and that he has given me 
great pleasure.” 

Another time he went and hid himself 
among some standing corn, holding his bag 



open as before, and when a brace of par¬ 
tridges ran into it, he drew the strings, and 
so caught them both. He then went and 
presented these to the King, as he had 
previously done with the rabbit which he 
took in the warren. The King in like man¬ 
ner received the partridges with great pleas¬ 
ure, and ordered his servants to reward him. 











66 


FAIRY TALES 


In this way the cat continued for two or 
th ree months to carry to his Majesty from 
time to time game of his masters taking. 
One day when he knew that the King was 
intending to take the air along the riverside 
with his daughter, who was the most beau¬ 
tiful Princess in the world, he went to his 
master and said: “ If you will follow my 
advice, your fortune is made. You have 
only to go and bathe in the river, just in 
the place I shall show you, and leave the 
rest to me.” 

The Marquis of Carabas did what the cat 
advised, without knowing what would be the 
good of doing so. While he was bathing, 
the King passed by, and the cat began to 
cry out with all his might: “Help! help! 
my Lord Marquis of Carabas is drowning! ” 

At this noise the King put his head out 
of the coach window, and, seeing it was the 
cat who had so often brought him presents 
of game, commanded his guards to run im¬ 
mediately to the assistance of his lordship 
the Marquis of Carabas. 




6 7 









































68 


FAIRY TALES 


While they were drawing the poor mar¬ 
quis out of the river the cat came up to 
the coach and told the King that while his 
master was bathing there had come by some 
rogues who ran off with his clothes, though 
he had cried out “ Thieves! thieves! ” several 
times as loud as he could. 

The cunning cat had hidden them under 
a great stone. 

The King immediately commanded the 
officers of his wardrobe to run and fetch 
one of his best suits for the Lord Marquis 
of Carabas. 

The King loaded the marquis with a thou¬ 
sand attentions, and as the fine clothes he had 
given him set off his good looks (for he was 
well made and comely), the King’s daughter 
found him very much to her liking, and the 
Marquis of Carabas had no sooner cast two 
or three respectful and somewhat tender 
glances in her direction than she fell in love 
with him to distraction. The King insisted 
on his getting into the coach and taking the 
ride with them. The cat, overjoyed at seeing 



PUSS IN BOOTS 


69 


how well his plan was beginning to suc¬ 
ceed, ran on before, and coming upon some 
countrymen who were mowing a meadow, 
he said to them, “ Good people, if you do 
not tell the King, who will presently pass 
this way, that the meadow which you are 
mowing belongs to my Lord Marquis of 
Carabas, you shall be chopped as small as 
herbs for the pot.” 

The King did not fail to ask the mowers 
to whom the meadow they were mowing 
belonged. 

“To my Lord Marquis of Carabas,” they 
answered all together, for the cat’s threat 
had frightened them. 

“ You have here a very fine piece of land, 
my Lord Marquis,” said the King. 

“Yes, sire,” replied the marquis, “this is 
a meadow which never fails to yield a plenti¬ 
ful harvest every year.” 

The cat, who still went on before, met 
some reapers, and said to them, “ Good 
people, if you do not say to the King, who 
will presently pass this way, that all this corn 




7 o 


FAIRY TALES 


belongs to the Marquis of Carabas, you shall 
be chopped as small as herbs for the pot.” 

The King, who passed by a moment after, 
wished to know to whom all that corn 
before him belonged. 

“To my Lord Marquis of Carabas,” re¬ 
plied the reapers; and the King was again 
very well pleased with the marquis. 

The cat continued to go before the car¬ 
riage and say the same words to every one 
he met, and the King was astonished at the 
vast estates of my Lord Marquis of Carabas. 

The cat came at last to a stately castle, 
the master of which was an ogre, the richest 
ever known ; for all the lands the King had 
been passing through belonged to this castle. 
The cat, who had taken care to inform 
himself who this ogre was, and what he 
could do, asked to speak with him, saying 
he could not pass so near his castle without 
having the honor of paying his respects 
to him. 

The ogre received him as civilly as an 
ogre could, and made him sit down. 



PUSS IN BOOTS 


71 


“ I have been assured,” said the cat, “ that 
you have the gift of being able to change 
yourself into all sorts of animals, if you have 



a mind to; that you can, for example, trans¬ 
form yourself into a lion or an elephant.” 

“ That is true,” answered the ogre roughly; 
“and to convince you, you shall see me now 
become a lion.” 





























7 2 


FAIRY TALES 


The cat was so terrified at the sight of a 
lion so near him that he sprang away, and 
climbed up on the roof, but not without 
much difficulty and danger, as his boots 
were of no use at all for walking upon tiles. 
A little while after, when he saw that the 
ogre had quitted the form of a lion, he came 
down, and owned that he had been a good 
deal frightened. 

“ I have been further informed (but I 
know not how to believe it),” said the cat, 
“ that you have also the power of taking the 
form of the smallest animals, — for example, 
that you can change yourself into a rat or a 
mouse; but I must own that I hold this to 
be impossible.” 

“Impossible!” cried the ogre; “you shall 
see.” And at the same instant he changed 
himself into a mouse and began to run 
about the floor. 

The moment the cat saw the ogre in this 
form he sprang upon him and ate him up. 

Meanwhile the King, who saw, as he 
passed, this fine castle of the ogre’s, had a 




PUSS IN BOOTS 


73 


mind to go into it. Master Puss, hearing 
the noise of his Majesty’s coach crossing the 
drawbridge, ran out, and said to the King, 
“Your Majesty is welcome to the castle of 
my Lord Marquis of Carabas.” 

“ What! my Lord Marquis,” cried the 
King, “and is this castle yours also? There 
can be nothing finer than this court, and all 
the stately buildings that surround it; let 
us see the interior, if you please.” 

The marquis gave his hand to the young 
Princess, and followed the King who went 
before. They entered a spacious hall, where 
they found a splendid collation which the 
ogre had prepared for some friends who were 
to visit him that very day, but who dared 
not enter, hearing that the King was there. 
The King was so charmed with the good 
qualities of my Lord the Marquis of Carabas, 
and his daughter had fallen so violently in 
love with him, that, seeing the vast estate 
he possessed, he said to him at the end of 
the collation, “ It depends only on you, my 
Lord Marquis, if you are not my son-in-law.” 



74 


FAIRY TALES 


The marquis, with low bows, accepted 
the honor which his Majesty conferred upon 
him, and forthwith that very same day 
married the Princess. 

Puss in Boots became a great lord, and 
never ran after mice any more except for 
his amusement. 









RAPUNZEL 



NCE upon a time there lived a man 


and his wife who were very sad be¬ 
cause they had no children. These people 
had a little window at the back of their 
house which overlooked a beautiful garden 
full of fine flowers and herbs. There was a 
high wall around this garden, and no one 
dared to go into it, because it belonged to 
a witch of great power, who was feared by 
everybody. 

One day the woman stood at this win¬ 
dow, looking into the garden, and saw a 
bed full of the finest rampion. It looked so 
fresh and green that she longed to eat some 
of it. This desire grew every day, and as 
she knew that she could not possibly have 
any of it, she pined away and looked pale 
and miserable. Then her husband was 
alarmed, and said, “ What ails you, dear 


wife ? ” 


75 


76 


FAIRY TALES 


“ Ah,” she replied sadly, “ if I cannot get 
some of that nice rampion to eat out of 
the garden behind our house, I know that I 
shall die! ” 

Her husband, who loved her dearly, 
thought to himself, “ Rather than let my 
wife die, I must bring her some rampion, 
let the cost be what it may.” So at dusk 
he climbed over the wall into the witch’s 
garden, hastily picked a handful of rampion 
leaves, and took them back to his wife. 

She made them into a salad, which she 
ate with great relish. Indeed, she liked it 
so very much that the next day she longed 
for it three times as much as before. She 
could have no peace until her husband 
descended into the garden and fetched her 
some more. So as soon as it was dusk 
he let himself down again into the garden; 
but when he had clambered down and was 
on the other side of the wall, he was terribly 
frightened, for there, standing before him, 
was the old witch with a frightful scowl on 
her face. 



RAPUNZEL 


77 


“ How dare you climb into my garden like 
a thief and steal my rampion ? ” she said, 
with angry looks. “You shall suffer for it.” 

“ Ah,” he replied, “ be merciful to me this 
time, I pray you! I am only here from 


necessity. My wife saw your rampion from 
her window, and had such a desire for it 
that she would have died if she had not 
had some of it to eat.” 

Then the witch’s anger cooled a little, 
and she answered: “If that is the case, I 









7» 


FAIRY TALES 


will’let you take away as much rampion as 
you like, but on one condition, — that you 
give me the child that your wife will shortly 
bring into the world. All shall go well with 
it, and I will care for it like a mother.” 

In his anxiety to get away the man agreed 
to what she asked, and as soon as the child 
was born the witch appeared, and having 
given it the name of Rapunzel, — which is 
another name for rampion, — she took it 
away with her. 

Rapunzel was the most beautiful child 
under the sun. When she was twelve years 
old the witch shut her up in a tower which 
lay in the middle of a great forest. This 
tower had neither stairs nor door, — only a 
little window high up at the very top of the 
wall. When the witch wanted to enter the 
tower she stood beneath this window and 
called : 

“ Rapunzel, Rapunzel, let down your hair, 

That I may climb without a stair.” 

Rapunzel had wonderful hair, long, and 
as fine as spun gold. When she heard the 




RAPUNZEL 


79 


voice of the witch she unfastened her braided 
tresses, wound them round one of the hooks 
of the little window, and let them hang loose. 
They fell down about twenty yards, so that 
the witch could easily climb up by them. 

After things had gone on in this way for 
a year or two, it happened one day that the 
King’s son was riding through that part of 
the forest and passed by the tower. He 
heard some one singing so beautifully that 
he stood spellbound, listening. It was Ra- 
punzel, who in her solitude and loneliness 
was trying to while away the long hours 
by singing. The Prince longed to see the 
sweet singer and climb up to her, but he 
searched in vain for a door into the tower. 
None was to be found. He rode home, but 
the song had made such a deep impression 
on him that he went every day to the wood 
and listened. One day, when he was stand¬ 
ing thus behind a tree, he saw the old witch 
approach and heard her call: 

“ Rapunzel, Rapunzel, let down your hair, 

That I may climb without a stair.” 



8o 


FAIRY TALES 


Then Rapunzel let down her braids, and 
the witch climbed up to her. 

“ So that is the ladder by which one 
mounts, is it?” said the Prince. “Then I, 
too, will climb it and try my luck.” 



The next night, when it began to grow dark, 
he went to the foot of the tower and cried: 


“ Rapunzel, Rapunzel, let down your hair, 
That I may climb without a stair.” 






















RAPUNZEL 


81 


The hair fell down at once, and the Prince 
climbed up by it. 

At first Rapunzel was terribly frightened 
when a man came in, for she had never 
seen one before; but the Prince spoke to 
her very kindly, and told her that his heart 
had been so touched by her singing that he 
could have no peace until he had seen her. 
So Rapunzel lost her fear, and when he 
asked her to marry him she thought, “ He 
is young and handsome, and he will cer¬ 
tainly love me far more than old Dame 
Gothel does”; so she said “Yes,” and put 
her hand in his. 

“ I will gladly go with you,” she con¬ 
tinued, “ but I do not see how I am to get 
down out of this tower. When you come, 
bring with you a skein of silk each time, 
and I will weave a ladder out of them; 
when it is finished, I will climb down by 
it, and you shall take me away on your 
horse.” 

They arranged that until the ladder was 
ready he should come and see her every 



8 2 


FAIRY TALES 


evening, bringing skeins of silk, for the 
witch came in the daytime. 

The witch knew nothing of all this till one 
day Rapunzel, not thinking what she was 
saying, made this remark: “Tell me, Dame 
Gothel, how is it that you are so much 
harder to pull up than the young Prince ? 
He is always with me in a moment.” 

“ Oh, you wicked, wicked child! ” cried 
the witch. “What is this I hear? I thought 
I had separated you from the whole world, 
and yet you have deceived me.” 

In her rage she seized Rapunzeks beauti¬ 
ful hair, twisted it round and round her left 
hand, snatched up a pair of scissors with her 
right, and snip, snap, she cut it all off; and 
the beautiful tresses lay on the ground. 
Then she was so hard-hearted that she took 
poor Rapunzel to a lonely desert place and 
there left her to live in utter loneliness and 
misery. 

But on the evening of the day on which 
she had carried Rapunzel away she fastened 
the braids which she had cut off to a hook 




33 









8 4 


FAIRY TALES 


by the window, and when the Prince came 
and called: 

“ Rapunzel, Rapunzel, let down your hair, 

That I may climb without a stair,” 

she let the hair down. The Prince climbed 
up, but instead of his beloved Rapunzel he 
- found the old witch, who looked at him with 
angry, wicked eyes, and cried mockingly, 
“ Aha! you thought to fetch your ladylove, 
but the pretty bird has flown, and the song 
is still; the cat caught it, and will scratch 
out your eyes too. Rapunzel is lost to you 
— you will never see her again.” 

The Prince was beside himself with grief, 
and in his despair he jumped right down 
from the tower. He escaped with his life, 
but the thorns into which he fell pierced his 
eyes out. Then he wandered, blind, about 
the forest, eating nothing but roots and 
berries, and constantly lamenting and weep¬ 
ing for the loss of his lovely bride. For some 
years he wandered about in great misery, 
and at last he came to the desert place 




RAPUNZEL 


85 


where Rapunzel was living. Suddenly he 
heard a voice which seemed familiar to him. 
He walked eagerly toward it, and as he 
came near, Rapunzel recognized him and 
fell on his neck and wept. Two of her tears 
fell upon his eyes, and they became clear 
again, so that he could see as well as ever. 

Then he led her to his kingdom, where 
they were welcomed with great joy, and 
they lived happily ever after. 







BEAUTY AND THE BEAST 


HERE was once a very rich merchant 



JL who had three sons and three daughters. 
These children had everything money could 
buy them. The daughters were all pretty, 
but the youngest was so very beautiful that 
from her childhood she was always called 
“ Beauty. ” This made her sisters very jeal¬ 
ous ; but they were proud of their wealth 
and of their position in society, and took 
pains to be haughty with any people who 
were not as rich as they. 

One day the merchant suddenly lost all 
his fortune. All that he had left of his vast 
property was a little house in the country, a 
long distance from the town. He told his 
children that they must go there now and 
work for a living. The two eldest replied 
that they need not leave town, for they 
had several lovers who would be glad to 
marry them. In this they found they were 


86 


BEAUTY AND THE BEAST 


87 


mistaken; their lovers would not look at 
them now. Because of their pride they had 
not made real friends, and nobody was very 
sorry to see them humbled. But every one 
pitied Beauty, who had always been kind 
and friendly to every one. Indeed, several 
gentlemen offered to marry her, though they 
knew she had not a penny; but she told 
them she could not think of leaving her 
father in his trouble. 

When they were settled in the country 
the merchant and his three sons set to work 
to till the fields. Beauty took care of the 
house. She rose at four o’clock in the morn¬ 
ing, lighted the fires, swept and dusted the 
house, and got breakfast for the family. 
At first she found all this very hard, for she 
was not used to it; but she soon grew 
stronger and healthier, and prettier than 
ever. When her work was over she would 
read, or play on the harpsichord, or sing as 
she sat at her spinning wheel. 

Her two sisters did not know what to do 
with themselves. They would get up at ten, 


y 




88 


FAIRY TALES 


and idle away the whole day, fretting for the 
loss of their fine clothes and gay parties. 
“ Do but see that girl! ” they would say to 
one another. “ What stupid, low tastes she 
has to be contented with this kind of life! ” 



But their father thought differently, and loved 
his youngest daughter more than ever. 

After two years, when they were all begin¬ 
ning to get accustomed to this new life, 
something happened to disturb them again. 
The merchant received the news that one of 
his ships, which he had believed to be lost, 
had come safely into port with a rich cargo. 
























BEAUTY AND THE BEAST 


89 


All the sons and daughters were much ex¬ 
cited at this news, and believed that their 
poverty was at an end. The two eldest 
daughters were wild with joy, and wanted to 
set out for town at once. When their father 
was ready to start, they begged him to bring 
them jewels and rings and rich dresses. 
Beauty was the only one of the children who 
had any doubt that this one ship would 
bring back their fortune; so, not wishing to 
trouble her father, she asked for nothing. 
But her father noticed her silence, and in¬ 
quired, “ What shall I bring you, Beauty ? ” 

“Well, dear father,” she said, “since you 
ask me, I should like to have you bring me 
a rose. They do not grow about here, and 
I am very fond of them.” 

Beauty did not particularly desire a rose, 
but she did not wish to seem to blame her 
sisters by saying she did not want anything. 

The merchant set off on his journey, but 
when he reached the port he was obliged to 
go to law about the cargo, and it ended in 
his returning home as poor as he came. He 



90 


FAIRY TALES 


was within thirty miles of home when, in the 
middle of a large forest, he was overtaken by 
a heavy snowstorm. He lost his way, and 
was beginning to fear he should die of 
hunger and cold, when all of a sudden he 
saw a light at the end of a long avenue of 
trees. As he came nearer he found it came 
from a splendid palace, the windows of 
which were blazing with light. He entered 
the courtyard, but, to his surprise, did not 
meet any one. His horse followed him, and 
seeing a stable door open, he walked in. The 
manger was filled with hay and oats, and 
the poor beast, who was almost famished, 
fell to eating heartily. His master walked 
toward the palace, and passed through sev¬ 
eral splendidly furnished rooms, but still 
saw nobody. He came to the dining room, 
where he found a good fire, and a table 
plentifully spread, and set for one person. 
As he was wet to the skin, he drew near 
the fire to dry his clothes, saying to himself, 
“I hope the master of the house or his serv¬ 
ants will excuse the liberty I am taking; 



BEAUTY AND THE BEAST 


91 


I suppose it will not be long before some 
of them appear.” 

He waited for some time, and still no one 
came; at last the clock struck eleven, and as 
he was so hungry he could not wait any 
longer, he helped himself to some chicken, 
and drank a little wine. Then he opened 
a door at the end of the hall, and found 
himself in a room with a very good bed in it. 
As he was very tired, he closed the door 
and went to bed. 

It was ten o’clock in the morning before 
the merchant awoke. As he was getting up, 
he was surprised to find a new suit of clothes 
in place of his own which were torn and 
spoiled. 

“ This palace,” said he to himself, “ cer¬ 
tainly belongs to some good fairy who has 
seen and pitied my misfortunes.” 

He looked out of the window, but instead 
of snowy woods he saw the most delightful 
arbors, filled with beautiful blooming flowers. 

He returned to the great hall where he 
had had supper the night before, and found 



92 


FAIRY TALES 


breakfast ready on a little table. He drank 
his chocolate, and then went out to look 
for his horse. As he was passing under 
an arbor of roses, he remembered Beauty’s 
request to him, and gathered a branch on 
which were several roses. Immediately he 
heard a loud roar, and saw stalking towards 
him so frightful a beast that he was ready 
to faint with fear. 

“You are most ungrateful,” said the beast 
in a terrible voice. “ I saved your life by ad¬ 
mitting you to my palace, and in return you 
steal my roses, which I value more than any¬ 
thing in the world. But your insolence shall 
not go unpunished; you shall die for it.” 

The poor merchant threw himself on his 
knees before the beast, and cried: “ Pardon 
me, my lord. I had no intention of offend- 
ing you by gathering a rose for one of my 
daughters, who desired me to bring her one.” 

“ I am not a lord, but a beast,” replied the 
monster. “ I hate flattery and compliments; 
so do not fancy you can move me by your 
fine speeches. You say you have daughters; 



BEAUTY AND THE BEAST 


93 


now I will spare you if you will give me one 
of your daughters. If not, promise that you 
will yourself return in three months.” 

The merchant had no intention of sacri¬ 
ficing one of his daughters, but he knew 



children once more. So he promised to re¬ 
turn, and the beast told him he might set out 
when he pleased; “but,” he added, “you 
need not go empty-handed. Go back to the 
room in which you slept, and you will see a 
great empty chest; fill it with whatever you 























94 


FAIRY TALES 


like best, and I will have it taken to your 
house for you.” Then the beast left him. 

“Well,” said the good man to himself, “if 
I must die, I shall at least have the comfort 
of leaving my children provided for.” 

He returned to the room, and found there 
heaps of gold pieces. With these he filled 
the chest. Then he went to the stable, 
took his horse, and left the palace in a far 
sadder mood than that in which he had 
entered it. 

In a few hours he reached home, and his 
children came running out to meet him. 
Instead of embracing them with joy, he 
gazed at them sadly and, holding out the 
branch of roses he had in his hand, said, 
“ Here, Beauty, take them; you little know 
how much they have cost your poor father.” 

Then he told them all that had happened 
to him. The two eldest sisters began to 
lament loudly, and to reproach Beauty, say¬ 
ing that it was all her fault. 

“ See,” they said, “ what comes from her 
pride. She would not ask for such things 



BEAUTY AND THE BEAST 


95 


as we did, but wanted to seem wiser than 
we; so now she will be the death of our 
poor father, and yet she does not so much 
as shed a tear.” 

“ Why should I ? ” said Beauty. “It would 
be useless, for my father shall not suffer on 
my account. As the beast will accept one 
of the daughters, I will gladly give myself 
up in his stead.” 

“No, indeed!” said her three brothers; 
“that shall not be. We will go and find the 
monster, and either kill him or perish in 
the attempt.” 

“ Do not imagine you can do any such 
thing,” said the merchant. “ I have seen him 
and know that his power is too great. But 
I will not consent to Beauty’s offer. I am 
old, and have not long to live, so I can lose 
only a few years. I am only sorry for you, 
my children.” 

But Beauty insisted, saying, “ Indeed, 
father, you shall not go to the palace with¬ 
out me; you cannot hinder me from fol¬ 
lowing you.” 



96 


FAIRY TALES 


The merchant was so distressed at the 
thought of losing his daughter that he quite 
forgot the chest filled with gold; but at 
night, when he retired to his room, he found, 
to his great surprise, the chest standing by 
his bedside. He decided to say nothing of 
his riches to his eldest daughters, for he 
knew they would want to return to town at 
once; but he told Beauty his secret, and she 
then told him that while he was away two 
gentlemen came and courted her sisters. 
She begged her father to consent to their 
marriage, and give them their portions, for 
she was so sweet-tempered that she wished 
them to be happy. 

When the day came Beauty got ready to 
set out with her father for the home of the 
beast. The horse took the direct road to 
the palace, and they arrived there all too 
soon. As they approached they found the 
windows brilliantly lighted as before. The 
horse went at once to the stable of his own 
accord, and the merchant and his daughter 
went into the great hall, where they found 




97 






























































































































9 8 


FAIRY TALES 


a table loaded with every dainty and set with 
two plates. The merchant had no heart to 
eat, but Beauty, trying to appear cheerful, 
sat down and served both him and herself. 
After supper they heard a great noise, and 
the merchant began to bid his child a sad 
farewell. In a moment the beast entered. 
Beauty w r as terrified at the frightful form, 
but she tried not to show her fear. 

“ Good evening, Beauty,” said the beast. 
“ Have you come here willingly ? ” 

“ Yes,” she faltered. 

“ You are very good, and I am greatly 
obliged to you,” he growled; and turning 
to the father, he added: “ As for you, old 
man, you are to go your way to-morrow 
morning, and never to return here again. 
Good night, merchant. Good night, Beauty.” 

“ Good night, Beast,” she answered, and 
the monster withdrew. 

Again the merchant tried to persuade 
Beauty to go back without him, but she 
would not hear to it. They went to bed, 
thinking they should not close their eyes all 



BEAUTY AND THE BEAST 


99 


night; but as soon as they lay down they 
fell fast asleep. Beauty dreamed that a stately 
and beautiful lady came to her, and said: 
“ I am very much pleased, dear Beauty, with 
the goodness you have shown in giving your¬ 
self to save your father. Do not be afraid; 
you shall be rewarded. Only do not trust 
to appearances.” 

Beauty told this dream to her father in 
the morning; but though it comforted him 
a little, he wept bitterly when he took leave 
of his dear child, for he feared he might 
never see her again. 

When her father was out of sight poor 
Beauty could not help crying, but she had 
made up her mind to be brave, and she pro¬ 
ceeded to explore the various rooms of the 
palace. What was her surprise when she 
came to a door over which was written, 
“BEAUTY’S ROOM.” She opened it in 
haste, and found a magnificently furnished 
room; but what delighted her most was a 
large library, a harpsichord, and several music 
books. She concluded that all this would 



100 


FAIRY TALES 


not be provided for her if she had only a 
day to live, and she took courage. Her sur¬ 
prise increased when she opened one of the 
books and found on the first page, in letters 
of gold, these words: 

“ Welcome, Beauty ! banish fear ! 

You are queen and mistress here; 

Speak your wishes, speak your will, — 

You will find them granted still.” 

“ Alas ! ” said she, sighing, “ there is noth¬ 
ing I wish so much as to see my father and 
know what he is doing.” 

She happened to turn towards a large 
mirror that was hanging near her, and there 
she saw her father arriving sadly at home. 
Her sisters came out to meet him, and in 
spite of their efforts to look sorrowful, it was 
plain that in their hearts they were very glad 
to see him return alone. The picture dis¬ 
appeared, and Beauty felt very grateful to 
the beast for thus giving her her wish. 

At noon she found dinner ready, and was 
entertained at table with music, though she 




BEAUTY AND THE BEAST 


IOI 


could see no player. After dinner she found 
she was very sleepy, and went to lie down in 
her room. She fell asleep instantly, and 
dreamed that a handsome young Prince 
came to her, and said: “ Beauty, you need 
not be so unhappy here as you expect. All 
your wishes will be granted. Only try to 
find me out, and love me as I love you, and 
above all do not trust to appearances.” 

In the evening, as she was going to sit 
down to supper, the beast came and asked 
leave to sit with her at table. She was fright¬ 
ened, but tried not to show it, saying, “ That 
is as you please.” 

“No,” replied the beast, “you alone are 
mistress here. You need only tell me to 
go, if my presence troubles you, and I will 
withdraw at once. Everything here is yours, 
and I should be much distressed if you were 
not happy.” 

Presently he inquired if she did not think # 
him very ugly. 

“ Yes,” said Beauty, “ but I think you are 
very kind, too.” 



102 


FAIRY TALES 


They talked for some time, and Beauty 
found her fear of him almost gone, when 
suddenly, just as they were leaving the table, 
the beast said, “ Beauty, will you marry me ? ” 
Beauty was so startled that she could 
hardly speak, but she faltered out, “ Oh, 
no! Beast.” 

“ Then good night, Beauty,” said the beast, 
very sadly, and left the room. 

Beauty felt very sorry for him, but she 
soon went to bed and dreamed of the un¬ 
known prince who had been in her mind all 
day. This time she thought he came and 
said to her: “Ah, Beauty! why are you so 
unkind to me ? Must I be unhappy always ? ” 
She could not understand it, but when she 
woke she thought that he must be in some 
way in the power of the beast, and began to 
wonder how she could help him. 

The days passed quickly enough in the 
lovely palace. Every evening the beast came 
to her, and they had entertaining talks to¬ 
gether. Beauty began to look forward to 
his visits, for she had become accustomed 



BEAUTY AND THE BEAST 


103 


to his ugliness, and found him very kind 
and interesting. But one thing gave her 
great concern: every night, before he left 
her, the beast asked her to become his wife. 
One night she said to him: “ Beast, you 
make me unhappy, for I can only offer you 
friendship. I cannot love you.” 

He begged her at least to promise never 
to leave him; but Beauty had seen in the 
glass that day that her father was sick with 
grief at the loss of her. Her sisters were 
married and her brothers had gone into the 
army, so he was all alone. She had so great 
a longing to see him that she told the beast 
that she should die if he refused her leave. 

“ Indeed, I had rather die of grief for your 
absence,” replied the beast, “than that you 
should be unhappy. You shall be there to¬ 
morrow morning.” 

Beauty promised to return in a week, and 
the beast told her that she had only to lay 
her ring on the table before she went to bed, 
when she wanted to come back, and she 
would find herself in the palace. 



104 


FAIRY TALES 


When she woke the next morning she 
found herself in her father’s cottage, and his 
delight at seeing her soon made him well 
again. He sent for her sisters, who came 
with their husbands. They were both un¬ 
happily married, one to a man who was so 
vain of his good looks that he cared nothing 
for his wife, the other to a man who was so 
sarcastic that he tired everybody out with 
his speeches, and teased his poor wife most 
of all. The sisters were so jealous at seeing 
Beauty so magnificently dressed, and hear¬ 
ing how kind the beast was to her, that they 
laid a plan to detain her longer than the 
week she had intended to stay, in hopes that 
this might make the beast angry, so that he 
would devour her. Accordingly, when the 
week was over, they affected such grief at 
her departure that Beauty was touched by 
their affection and agreed to stay longer. 
She could not help reproaching herself for 
staying, but she could not make up her 
mind to wish herself back when they urged 
her so strongly. 



BEAUTY AND THE BEAST 


105 


But on the night of the tenth day she 
dreamed that she saw the beast lying half¬ 
dead on the grass in the palace garden. Wak¬ 
ing in tears, she reproached herself bitterly 
for her ingratitude, and rose, put her ring on 
the table, and then went back to bed, where 
she fell asleep again. When she woke the 
next morning she was overjoyed to find 
herself back at the palace. She put on one 
of her richest dresses to please him, and 
waited impatiently till evening; but nine 
o’clock struck, and still no beast appeared. 
Then Beauty remembered her dream and 
ran to the garden to search for him. At 
last she found the path she had seen in her 
dream, and there lay the poor beast sense¬ 
less on the grass. Forgetting his ugliness, 
she threw herself on him in despair, and felt 
that his heart was still beating. Then she 
ran to fetch some water from the spring, 
and weeping, poured it on his head. The 
beast opened his eyes, and said faintly: 
“You forgot your promise, and I did not 
care to live without you, so I determined 



io6 


FAIRY TALES 



to starve myself; but since you are come, 
I shall die happy.” 

“ No, you shall not die, dear Beast! ” cried 
Beauty; “ for I love you, and want you to be 
my husband.” 

She had scarcely spoken these words when 
a blaze of light streamed from the palace 










BEAUTY AND THE BEAST 


107 


windows, fireworks were displayed, and tri¬ 
umphant strains of music sounded. Beauty 
turned to the beast to inquire what had 
happened, but he had disappeared, and in 
his place stood the Prince of her dreams, 
whom she had loved so long. He thanked 
her for having broken his enchantment. 

“ But where is my poor beast ? ” asked 
Beauty, anxiously. 

“ I am he,” replied the Prince. “A wicked 
fairy condemned me to remain in that form 
till some beautiful maiden should love me and 
consent to marry me in spite of my ugliness.” 

The Prince conducted Beauty to the pal¬ 
ace, where they were welcomed by the stately 
lady of her dream, who was the mother of the 
Prince, and who thanked her for restoring 
her son to his proper form. She found her 
father there, too. The young couple were 
married the very next day, and the Prince 
and his beautiful bride were heartily wel¬ 
comed by his subjects, who had long mourned 
his absence. Beauty and the Prince reigned 
happily for many, many, long years. 



THE STEADFAST TIN SOLDIER 


T HERE were once five and twenty tin 
soldiers. They were brothers, for they 
had all been made out of the. same old tin 
spoon. They all shouldered their muskets 
and looked straight before them. Their uni¬ 
forms were very smart — red and blue — and 
very splendid. The first thing they heard 
in the world, when the lid was taken off the 
box in which they lay, was the words, “ Tin 
soldiers! ” These words were spoken by a 
little boy, who clapped his hands for joy. 
The soldiers had been given him because 
it was his birthday, and now he was setting 
them out on the table. 

Each was exactly like the rest, except one, 
who had but one leg. He had been cast last 
of all, and there had not been quite enough 
tin to finish him; but he stood as firmly on 
his one leg as the others on their two, and it 
was he whose fortunes became so remarkable. 

108 



THE STEADFAST TIN SOLDIER 109 


On the table on which the tin soldiers were 
being set out were many other toys, but the 
nicest of all was a pretty little castle made 
of cardboard. Through its tiny windows one 
could see right into the rooms. In front of 
the castle stood little trees, clustering round a 
small mirror which was meant to represent 
a transparent lake. Waxen swans swam on 
its surface, and it reflected their images. 

All this was very pretty, but prettiest of 
all was a little lady who stood at the open 
door of the castle. She, too, was cut out of 
cardboard; but she had on a dress of the 
finest gauze, with a narrow blue ribbon over 
her shoulders like a scarf, fastened in the 
middle with a shining tinsel rose. The little 
lady was stretching out both her arms (for 
she was a dancer), and was lifting one leg 
so high that the soldier could see nothing of 
it. He thought that, like himself, she had 
but one leg. 

“ That would be just the wife for me,” 
thought he, “ if she were not so grand; but 
she lives in a castle, while I have only a box, 



I IO 


FAIRY TALES 


and there are five and twenty of us in that. 
It would be no place for her. Still, I must 
try to make her acquaintance.” 

And so he lay down at full length behind 
a snuffbox on the table, where he could easily 
watch the dainty little lady, who continued to 
stand on one leg without losing her balance. 

When the evening came, all the other tin 
soldiers were put away in their box, and the 
people of the house went to bed. Now the 
playthings began to play in their turn. They 
visited, fought battles, and gave balls. The 
tin soldiers rattled in their box, for they 
wanted to join the rest; but they could not 
lift the lid. The nutcrackers turned somer¬ 
saults, and the slate-pencil ran about on the 
slate. There was such a din that the canary 
woke and began to speak, and in verse, too. 
The only ones who did not stir from their 
places were the Tin Soldier and the Lady 
Dancer. She still stood on tiptoe with out¬ 
stretched arms, and he was just as persever¬ 
ing on his one leg; he never once turned 
his eyes away from her. 



THE STEADFAST TIN SOLDIER 


111 


Twelve o’clock struck — crash ! up sprang 
the licl of the snuffbox. There was no snuff 
in it, but a little black goblin. You see it 
was not a real snuffbox but a Jack-in-the-box. 

“ Tin soldier,” said the Goblin, “ keep thine 
eyes to thyself. Don’t stare at what does not 
concern thee! ” 

But the Tin Soldier pretended not to hear. 

“Very well, you just wait till to-morrow,” 
said the Goblin. 

Next morning, when the children got up, 
the Tin Soldier was placed on the window- 
ledge. Whether it was the Goblin or the 
wind that did it, all at once the window dew 
open, and the Tin Soldier fell head foremost 
from the third story to the street below. It 
was a tremendous fall. Over and over he 
turned in the air, till he landed at last on his 
head, with his bayonet sticking fast between 
two paving-stones, while his one leg stood 
upright in the air. 

The maidservant and the little boy ran 
down to look for him; but though they 
nearly trod on him, they could not find him. 



I I 2 


FAIRY TALES 


If the Soldier had only called out “ Here I 
am ! ” they might easily enough have found 
him ; but he did not think it becoming to cry 
out for help, because he was in uniform. 

Now it began to rain. Faster and faster 
came the drops, till it became a regular down¬ 
pour. When it was over, two street boys 
came by. 

“ Look here! ” said one, “ here lies a tin 
soldier. He shall have a sail in a boat.” 

So they made a boat out of an old news¬ 
paper, and put the Tin Soldier in the middle 
of it, and away he sailed down the gutter, 
while the two boys ran along by his side, 

clapping their hands. 

» 

Goodness! how the waves rocked that 
paper boat, and how swift the current was! 
The Tin Soldier became quite giddy, the 
boat veered round so quickly; still he moved 
not a muscle, but looked straight before him, 
and held his bayonet firmly. 

All at once the boat passed into a drain, 
and it became as dark as his own old home 
in the box. 



THE STEADFAST TIN SOLDIER 


1 1 3 

“Where am I going now?” thought he. 
“Yes, to be sure, it must be all that Goblins 
doing. Ah, if the little lady were but sailing 
with me in the boat, I would not care if it 
were twice as dark ! ” 

Just then a great water-rat, that lived under 
the drain, came out. 



“ Have you a passport ? ” asked the rat. 
“ Where is your passport ? ” 

But the Tin Soldier kept silence, and only 
held his bayonet tighter than ever. The boat 
sailed on, but the rat followed. Whew! how 
he gnashed his teeth, and shouted to the sticks 
and straws, “ Stop him ! stop him ! He has n’t 
paid toll! he has n’t shown his passport! ” 
But the current became swifter and swifter. 











FAIRY TALES 


114 

Already the Tin Soldier could see the day¬ 
light at the point where the tunnel ended; 
but at the same time he heard a rushing, roar¬ 
ing noise, at which a bolder man might well 
have trembled. Think! where the tunnel 
ended, the drain widened into a great canal. 
It was as dangerous for the Soldier as sailing 
down a mighty waterfall would be for us. 

He was now so near it that he could not 
stop. The boat dashed on, and the Tin Sol¬ 
dier held himself so stiff and straight that 
no one might say of him that he so much 
as winked an eye. Three or four times the 
boat whirled round and round ; it was full of 
water to the brim, and must certainly sink. 

The Tin Soldier stood up to his neck in 
water. Deeper and deeper sank the boat, 
and softer and softer grew the paper; and 
now the water closed over the Soldier’s head. 
He thought of the pretty little dancer whom 
he should never see again, and in his ears 
rang the words of the song, 

Fare thee well, thou valiant stranger; 

Thou goest into mortal danger. 



THE STEADFAST TIN SOLDIER 


115 

The paper boat parted in the middle, 
and the Tin Soldier fell down, down — but 
at that moment he was swallowed by a 
great fish. 

Oh, how dark it was inside the fish! 
darker even than it had been in the drain, 
and so narrow ! But the Tin Soldier retained 



his courage; he lay at full length, shoulder¬ 
ing his bayonet as before. 

To and fro swam the fish; then he made 
the strangest movements and became quite 
still. 

Something like a flash of lightning passed 
through him, and a voice said, “ Tin Sol¬ 
dier!” 

The fish had been caught, taken to mar¬ 
ket, sold, and bought, and taken to the 



















































FAIRY TALES 


116 

kitchen, where the cook had cut it open with 
a large knife. She seized the Tin Soldier 
between her finger and thumb and carried 
him into the room where the family sat, and 
where all were eager to see the wonderful 
man who had traveled about in the stomach 
of a fish; but the Tin Soldier remained 
unmoved. He was not at all proud. 

They set him upon a table there. But 
how could so curious a thing happen, — the 
Soldier was in the very same room in which 
he had been before ? He saw the same chil¬ 
dren ; the same toys stood upon the table, 
and among them was the castle with the 
pretty little dancing maiden. She was still 
balancing herself on one leg. She, too, was 
steadfast. That touched the Tin Soldier’s 
heart. He could have wept tin tears, but 
that would not have been proper. He looked 
at her, and she looked at him, but neither 
spoke a word. 

And now one of the little boys took the 
Tin Soldier and threw him into the stove. 
He gave no reason for doing so, but no 



THE STEADFAST TIN SOLDIER 


I 17 


doubt the Goblin in the snuffbox had some¬ 
thing to do with it. 

The Tin Soldier stood now in a blaze of 
red light. The heat he felt was terrible: but 
whether it proceeded from the fire, or from 
the love in his heart, he did not know. He 
saw that the colors were quite gone from his 
uniform; but whether that happened on his 
journey, or had been caused by grief, no one 
could say. He looked at the little Lady, she 
looked at him, and he felt himself melting; 
still he stood firm, with his bayonet on his 
shoulder. • Then suddenly a door flew open, 
the draft caught the Dancer, and she flew 
straight into the stove to the Tin Soldier, 
flashed up in a flame, and was gone! Then 
the Tin Soldier melted down into a little 
lump, and in the ashes the maid found him 
next day, in the shape of a little tin heart; 
while of the Dancer nothing remained save 
the tinsel rose, and that was burned as black 
as a coal. 



HOP-O’-MY-THUMB 


O NCE upon a time there was a fagot- 
maker and his wife who had seven 
children, all boys. The eldest was but ten 
years old, the youngest only seven. 

They were very poor, and their seven chil¬ 
dren were a great burden to them, because 
not one of them was able to earn his own liv¬ 
ing. What worried them still more was that 
the youngest was a delicate little fellow, who 
hardly ever spoke a word. They took for 
stupidity this silence, which was really a sign 
of good sense. He was tiny, too; when he 
was born he was no bigger than a man’s 
thumb, so they called him Hop-o’-my-Thumb. 

The poor child was the drudge of the 
whole household, and always bore the blame 
for everything that went wrong. However, 
he was really the cleverest and brightest of 
all the brothers, and if he spoke little, he 

heard and thought the more. 

118 


HOP-O’-MY-THUMB 


119 

There came now a very bad year, and the 
famine was so great that these poor people 
felt obliged to get rid of their children. One 
evening, when the children had gone to bed 
and the fagot-maker was sitting with his 
wife at the fire, he said to her, with his heart 
ready to burst with grief: “You see plainly 
that we can no longer give our children 
food, and I cannot bear to see them die of 
hunger before my eyes. I am resolved to 
lose them in the forest to-morrow. This 
may very easily be done, for while they are 
amusing themselves in tying up fagots we 
have only to slip away and leave them with¬ 
out their taking any notice.” 

“ Ah ! ” cried out his^wife; “ do you think 
you could really take out your children and 
lose them ? ” 

In vain did her husband remind her of their 
extreme poverty, she would not consent to 
it; she was poor, but she was their mother. 
At last, when she reflected what a grief it 
would be to her to see them die of hunger, 
she consented, and went weeping to bed. 



I 20 


FAIRY TALES 


Hop-o’-my-Thumb heard all they had said ; 
for when he heard, as he lay in bed, that 
they were talking of their affairs, he got up 
softly and slipped under his father’s stool, to 
hear without being seen. He went to bed 
again, but did not sleep a wink all the rest 



of the night, thinking of what he should do. 
He got up early in the morning, and went 
to the bank of a brook, where he filled his 
pockets full of small white pebbles, and then 
went back home. 

They all set out, but Hop-o’-my-Thumb 
did not say a word to any of his brothers 
about what he had heard. 















HOP-O’-MY-THUMB 


I 2 I 


They went into a very thick forest, where 
they could not see one another ten paces 
apart. The fagot-maker began to cut wood, 
and the children to gather up the sticks to 
make fagots. When their father and mother 
saw them busy at their work, they slipped 
away from them little by little, and then made 
their escape all at once by a winding bypath. 

When the children found that they were 
alone they began to cry bitterly. Hop-o’-my- 
Thumb let them cry on, knowing very well 
how he could get home again; for, as he 
came, he had dropped the little white pebbles 
he had in his pockets all along the way. Then 
he said to them, “ Do not be afraid, my 
brothers; father and mother have left us 
here, but I will lead you home again, — only 
follow me.” 

They followed him, and he brought them 
home through the forest by the very same 
way by which they had come. At first they 
dared not go in, but stood outside the door 
to listen to what their father and mother 


were saying. 



122 


FAIRY TALES 


Just as the fagot-maker and his wife reached 
home, the lord of the manor sent them ten 
crowns, which he had owed them for a long 
time, and which they had never expected to 
get. This gave them new life, for the poor 
people were almost famished with hunger. 
As it was a long while since they had eaten, 
the woman bought as much meat as would 
satisfy six or eight persons. When they 
had satisfied their hunger she said: “Alas! 
where are our poor children now ? they would 
make a good feast of what we have left here. 
It was you, William, who wished to lose 
them; I told you we should repent of it. 
What are they doing now in the forest? 
Alas ! perhaps the wolves have already eaten 
them up! You are very cruel to have lost 
your children in this way.” 

The fagot-maker grew very impatient at 
last, for she repeated more than twenty times 
that they should repent of it, and that she 
had told him so. He threatened to beat her 
if she did not hold her tongue. The fagot- 
maker was, perhaps, even more sorry than 



HOP-O’-MY-THUMB 


123 


his wife, but she teased him, and he could 
not endure her telling him that she was in 
the right all the time. She wept bitterly, 
saying, “ Alas! where are my children now, 
— my poor children? ” 

She said this once so very loud that the 
children, who were at the door, heard her 
and cried out all together, “ Here we are! 
here we are ! ” 

She ran quickly to let them in, and said, 
as she embraced them: “How happy I am 
to see you again, my dear children! You 
must be very tired and very hungry. And 
you, little Peter, you are dirt all over! Come 
in and let me get you clean again.” 

Peter was her eldest boy, whom she loved 
more than all the rest, because he had red 
hair like her own. 

They sat down to table, and ate with 
an appetite which pleased both father and 
mother, to whom they told — speaking all at 
once — how frightened they had been in the 
forest. The good people were delighted to 
see their children once more, and this joy 



124 


FAIRY TALES 


continued while the ten crowns lasted; but 
when the money was all gone they fell back 
again into their former anxiety, and resolved 
to lose their children again, — and that they 
might be the surer of doing it, they decided 
to take them much farther off than before. 

They could not talk of this so secretly but 
that they were overheard by Hop-o’-my- 
Thumb, who counted on getting out of the 
difficulty as he had done before; but though 
he got up very early the next morning to go 
and pick up some little pebbles, he could not 
carry out his plan, for he found the house- 
door double-locked. He did not know what 
to do; but a little later, when his father had 
given each of them a piece of bread for their 
breakfast, it came into his head that he could 
make his bread do instead of pebbles, by 
dropping crumbs all along the way as they 
went, so he put it into his pocket. 

Their father and mother led them into 
the thickest and gloomiest part of the forest, 
and then, stealing away into a bypath, left 
them there. Hop-o’-my-Thumb did not worry 



HOP-O’-MY-THUMB 


I2 5 


himself very much at this, for he thought 
he could easily find the way back by means of 
his bread that he had scattered all along as he 
came ; but he was very much surprised when 
he could not find a single crumb,— the birds 
had come and eaten them all. 

They were now in great trouble, for the 
farther they went the more they went wrong 
and the deeper they got into the forest. 
Night came on, and with it a high wind 
which frightened them desperately. They 
fancied they heard on every side the howling 
of wolves coming to eat them up. They 
hardly dared to speak or turn their heads. 
Then there came a heavy rain, which wetted 
them to the very skin. Their feet slipped at 
every step, and they fell into the mud, getting 
themselves so covered with dirt that they 
could not even get it off their hands. 

Hop-o’-my-Thumb climbed to the top of 
a tree to see if he could discover anything. 
Searching on every side, he saw at last a 
glimmering light, like that of a candle, but 
a long way off, and beyond the forest. He 



FAIRY TALES 


I 26 


came down, but when he was upon the 
ground he could not see it. This discouraged 
him very much; but finally, when he had 
been walking for some time with his brothers 
towards that side on which he had seen the 
light, he caught sight of it again as he came 
out of the wood. 

They came at last to the house where this 
candle was, although not without many 
frights, for they lost sight of it every time 
they came into a hollow — which was very 
often. They knocked at the door and a kind 
woman came to open it. She asked them 
what they wanted, and Hop-o’-my-Thumb 
told her they had lost their way in the for¬ 
est, and begged to stay and sleep there for 
charity’s sake. When the woman saw how 
pretty they were she began to weep, and said 
to them: “ Alas, poor children, you do not 
know what kind of a place you have come 
to! Do you know that this house belongs to 
a cruel ogre who eats up little children ? ” 

“ Alas ! dear madam,” answered Hop-o’-my- 
Thumb, who was trembling in every limb, as 



HOP-O’-MY-THUMB 


127 


were his brothers, too, “ what shall we do ? 
The wolves of the forest will surely devour 
us if you refuse us shelter here, and so we 
would rather the gentleman should eat us. 
Perhaps he will have pity on us if you are 
so kind as to entreat him for us.” 

The ogre’s wife, who believed that she 
could hide them from her husband till morn¬ 
ing, let them come in, and had them warm 
themselves at a very good fire, before which 
a whole sheep was being roasted for the 
ogre’s supper. 

As they were beginning to get warm, they 
heard three or four great raps at the door: 
this was the ogre, who was coming home. 
His wife hurried the children under the bed 
to hide them, and then went to open the 
door. The ogre at once asked if supper was 
ready and the wine drawn, and sat down at 
the table. The sheep was raw still, but he 
liked it all the better for that. But in a 
minute or two he sniffed about to the right 
and to the left, saying, “ I smell fresh meat, 
I smell fresh meat.” 



128 


FAIRY TALES 


“ What you smell,” said his wife, “ must be 
the calf which I have just killed and dressed.” 

“ I smell fresh meat, I tell you once more,” 
said the ogre, looking crossly at his wife, 
“ and there is something here which I do 
not understand.” 

As he spoke these words, he got up from 
the table, and went straight to the bed. 

“ Ah,” said he, “ that is how you thought 
to cheat me! Wretch! I do not know why 
I do not eat you up too; it is well for you 
that you are old and tough. Here is game 
which comes just in season to entertain three 
ogres, friends of mine, who are to pay me a 
visit in a day or two.” 

With that he dragged them out from under 
the bed one by one. The poor children fell 
upon their knees and begged for pardon; 
but they had to deal with the most cruel 
of ogres, who, far from having any pity for 
them, had already devoured them with his 
eyes, and now told his wife they would be 
dainty morsels when she served them up 
with a good sauce. 



HOP-O’-MY-THUMB 


129 


He then fetched a great knife and began 
to sharpen it on a great whetstone which he 
held in his left hand; and all the while he 
came nearer and nearer to the poor children. 
He had already taken hold of one of them 



when his wife said to him: “ Why do you 
need to do it at this time of night? Is not 
to-morrow time enough ? ” 

“Hold your prating!” said the ogre; 
“ they will grow more tender if they are kept 
a little while after they are killed.” 



























130 


FAIRY TALES 


“ But you have so much meat already,” 
replied his wife; “ here are a calf, two sheep, 
and half a pig.” 

“You are right,” said the ogre. “Give 
them all a good supper, that they may not 
get thin, and put them to bed.” 

The good woman was overjoyed at this, 
and gave them a good supper; but they 
were so afraid that they could not eat a bit. 
As for the ogre, he sat down again to drink, 
well pleased that he had such a feast with 
which to treat his friends. He drank a dozen 
glasses more than usual, which went to his 
head and soon obliged him to go to bed. 

The ogre had seven daughters, who were 
still little children. These young ogresses 
had all of them very fine complexions, be¬ 
cause they ate raw meat like their father; 
but they had small gray eyes, quite round, 
hooked noses, wide mouths, and very long, 
sharp teeth, set very far apart from each 
other. They were not very wicked yet, but 
they gave promise of becoming so, for they 
had already bitten little children. 



HOP-O’-MY-THUMB 


131 

They had been put to bed early, all seven 
in one great bed, each with a crown of gold 
upon her head/ There was another bed of 
the same size in the room, and in this the 
ogre’s wife put the seven little boys, and then 
went to bed herself along with her husband. 

Hop-o’-my-Thumb took notice that the 
ogre’s daughters all had crowns of gold on 
their heads, and he was so afraid lest the 
ogre should repent his not killing them, that 
he got up about midnight, and, taking his 
brothers’ caps and his own, went very softly 
and put them on the heads of the seven little 
ogresses. But he first took off their crowns 
of gold, and put them on his own head and 
his brothers’, so that the ogre might take 
them for his daughters, and his daughters 
for the little boys whom he wanted to kill. 

Everything turned out just as he had 
thought; for the ogre, waking about mid¬ 
night, began to feel sorry that he had put off 
killing the boys till morning, when he might 
have done it overnight, so he jumped up 
quickly out of bed, taking his great knife. 



i 3 2 


FAIRY TALES 


“ Let us see,” said he, “ how our little rogues 
are getting on, and do the job up at once! ” 

He groped his way up to his daughters’ 
room, and went to the bed where the little 
boys lay, all fast asleep except Hop-o’-my- 
Thumb, who was terribly afraid when he 
found the ogre fumbling about his head, as 
he had done about his brothers’. When he 
felt the golden crowns, he said, “ Truly, I 
should have done a pretty piece of work last 
night; it is perfectly evident that I drank 
too much wine then.” 

Next he went to the bed where the girls 
lay, and when he felt the boys’ caps, he said, 
“ Ah, my merry lads, here you are! let us 
get to work.” 

And saying these words, without more 
ado he cut the throats of all his seven 
daughters. Well pleased with what he had 
done, he went back to bed again. 

As soon as Hop-o’-my-Thumb heard the 
ogre snore, he waked his brothers and told 
them to put on their clothes quickly and 
follow him. They stole down softly into the 



HOP-O’-MY-THUMB 


133 


garden and got over the wall. They ran 
almost all night, trembling all the while, and 
without knowing where they were going. 

The ogre, when he woke, said to his wife, 
“ Go up and dress those young rascals who 
came here last night.” 

The ogress was very much surprised at 
this goodness of her husband, not dreaming 
of the manner in which she was to dress 
them; but, thinking he had ordered her to 
go up and put on their clothes, she went up, 
and was horrified when she saw her daugh¬ 
ters all dead. She fell in a faint. 

The ogre, fearing that his wife would be 
too long in doing what he had ordered, went 
up himself to help her. He was no less amazed 
than his wife at this frightful spectacle. 

“ Ah ! what have I done ? ” he cried. “ But 
the wretches shall pay for it, and that 
instantly.” 

He threw a pitcher of water upon his 
wife’s face, and as soon as she came to her¬ 
self he said, “ Bring me quickly my seven- 
league boots, that I may go and catch them.” 




*34 






























HOP-O’-MY-THUMB 


135 


He went out into the country, and after 
running in all directions he turned at last 
into the very road where the poor children 
were, not more than a hundred paces from 
their father’s house, to which they were 
running. They espied the ogre, who went 
at one step from mountain to mountain, 
and over rivers as easily as the narrowest 
brooks. Hop-o’-my-Thumb, seeing a hollow 
rock near the place where they were, made 
his brothers hide in it, and crowded into it 
himself, watching always to see what would 
become of the ogre. 

The ogre, who found himself very tired 
with his long and fruitless journey (for seven- 
league boots are very tiring to wear), had a 
great mind to rest himself, and happened to 
sit down upon the very rock where the little 
boys had hidden themselves. As he was com¬ 
pletely worn out, he fell asleep, and began to 
snore so frightfully that the poor children 
were no less afraid of him than when he held 
up his great knife and was going to cut their 
throats. Hop-o’-my-Thumb was not so much 



136 


FAIRY TALES 


frightened as his brothers. He told them to 
run quickly home, while the ogre was sleep¬ 
ing, and not to worry about him. They took 
his advice and soon got home safely. 

Hop-o’-my-Thumb then went up to the 
ogre, pulled off his boots gently, and put 
them on his own legs. They were very long 
and large, but as they were fairy boots they 
had the gift of becoming big or little accord¬ 
ing to the legs of those who wore them; so 
they fitted his feet and legs as well as if they 
had been made on purpose for him. 

As soon as Hop-o’-my-Thumb had made 
sure of the ogre’s seven-league boots, he 
went to the palace and offered his services 
to carry orders from the King to his army, 
— which was a great way off, — and to bring 
back the quickest accounts of the battle they 
were just at that time fighting with the 
enemy. He thought he could be of more use 
to the King than all his mail coaches, and 
so might make his fortune in this manner. 
He succeeded so well that in a short time 
he had made money enough to keep himself, 




HOP-O’-MY-THUMB 


137 


his father and mother, and his six brothers 
(without their having to tire themselves out 
with working), for all the rest of their lives. 
He then went home to his father’s house, 
where he was welcomed with great joy. As 
the great fame of his boots had been talked of 
at court by this time, the King sent for him, 
and employed him on the greatest affairs of 
state; so that he became one of the richest 
men in the kingdom. 

And now let us see what became of the 
ogre. He slept so soundly that he never 
knew that his boots were gone; but he fell 
from the corner of the rock where Hop-o’-my- 
Thumb and his brothers had left him, and 
bruised himself so badly from head to foot 
that he could not stir. So he was forced to 
stretch himself out at full length and wait 
for some one to come and help him. 

Now a good many fagot-makers passed 
near the place where the ogre lay, and when 
they heard him groan they went up to ask 
him what was the matter. But the ogre had 
eaten so many children in his lifetime that 



138 


FAIRY TALES 


he had grown so very big and fat, that these 
men could not have carried even one of his 
legs; so they were forced to leave him there. 
At last night came on, and then a large ser¬ 
pent came out of a wood near by and stung 
him, so that he died in great pain. 

As soon as Hop-o’-my-Thumb heard of the 
ogre’s death, he told the King — whose great 
favorite he had become — all that the good- 
natured ogress had done to save the lives of 
himself and his brothers. The King was so 
much pleased at what he heard that he asked 
Hop-o’-my-Thumb what favor he could be¬ 
stow on her. Hop-o’-my-Thumb thanked his 
Majesty, and desired that the ogress might 
have the noble title of Duchess of Draggletail 
given to her, which was no sooner asked than 
granted. The ogress then came to court, and 
lived happily for many years, enjoying the 
vast fortune she found in the ogre’s chests. 
As for Hop-o’-my-Thumb, he grew more 
witty and brave every day till at last the King 
made him the greatest lord in the kingdom, 
and set him over all his affairs. 



“AINSEL” 


M istress lindsay, a widow, and 

her son Alan, who was a little boy 
then, lived in a cottage near Rothley. One 
winter’s night Alan refused to go to bed with 
his mother, saying, “ I wish to sit up for a little 
while longer, for I am not a bit sleepy.” 

His mother told him that if he sat up by 
himself the old fairy wife would most cer¬ 
tainly come and take him away. But the 
boy laughed at this, and his mother went to 
bed, leaving him sitting by the fire. 

He had not been there long, watching the 
fire and enjoying its cheerful warmth, when 
a bonny little figure, about the size of a 
child’s doll, hopped down the chimmey and 
alighted on the hearth. The little fellow 
was somewhat startled at first, but the fairy’s 
smile as it danced to and fro before him 
soon overcame his fears. At last he in¬ 
quired, “ What do they call thee ? ” 

139 


140 


FAIRY TALES 


“Ainsel,” 1 replied the little thing, tossing 
its wee head. 

After a bit it turned to Alan with the 
same question, “And what do they call 
thee ? ” 

“ My Ainsel,” answered Alan. 

So they began playing together like any 
two children Their gambols went on till 
the fire began to grow dim. But when 
Alan took up the poker to stir it, a hot 
cinder fell accidentally upon the foot of his 
playmate. Her tiny voice was instantly 
raised to a most terrific yell, and Alan had 
scarcely time to crouch into the box bed 
behind his mother before the voice of the 
old fairy wife was heard shouting : “ Who’s 
done it ? Who’s done it ? ” 

“ Hoots ! it was ‘ my Ainsel ’! ” answered 
the tiny fairy. 

“ Why, then,” said her mother, as she 
kicked her up the chimmey, “ what’s all this 
noise for ? There s no one to blame but 
thine Ainsel.” 


1 That is, ownself. 



PERONELLA 


O NCE upon a time there was a Queen so 
old and ugly, so bent down under the 
weight of years and infirmities, that she 
grew weary of life, unless her youth could 
be renewed to her. A fairy who had been 
present at her birth now paid the Queen a 
visit, and told her that if she could find 
a young girl willing to change places with 
her Majesty, — to give her bloom and youth 
in exchange for the Queen’s old age and 
scepter, — then the fairy by one wave of 
her wand would fulfill their desire. 

The Queen was delighted, for she would 
much rather be poor, young, and healthy, 
than a rich queen who was too old and infirm 
to enjoy life. She therefore ordered the 
strictest search to be made throughout her 
dominions for a young girl who would be 
willing to give her youth in exchange for age, 
infirmities, and riches. It was not long before 


142 


FAIRY TALES 


several discontented and ambitious girls 
came to accept the offer; but when they saw 
how feeble and helpless the old Queen was, 
how she could eat nothing but gruels and 
soups, how wrinkled and withered she was, 
how many times she said over the same thing, 
and how she tottered about bent double over 
her cane, they said they preferred their own 
conditions, poor and humble as they were, 
to the riches and the hundred years of her 
Majesty. 

Afterwards there came some persons of a 
still more ambitious nature; to these the 
Queen promised grand titles and high honors. 
At first they were very willing; but when they 
had stayed a short time with her Majesty, 
they left the room, shaking their heads and 
saying, “Of what use would all the Queen 
possesses be to us, since we should then be 
so disfigured and so ugly that we should be 
ashamed to show ourselves to any one ? ” 

At length a young maiden from a country 
village presented herself. She was exceed¬ 
ingly beautiful, and declared herself willing 



PERONELLA 


H 3 


to accept the crown in exchange for her youth. 
Her name was Peronella. At first the Queen 
was very angry at her presumption, for the 
girl was very poor; but, after all, what did 
that matter when the Queen’s purpose was to 



grow young again? She proposed to Pero¬ 
nella to divide the kingdom with her. 

“ You shall have one half, and I the other,” 
said she. “ Surely that is enough for you, 
who are but a poor country girl.” 

“No,” replied Peronella, “that will not 
satisfy me at all; I will have the whole, 































144 


FAIRY TALES 


or I will remain a country girl, strong and 
beautiful and active, while you keep your 
wrinkles and your hundred years.” 

“ But,” said the Queen, “ what shall I do if 
I give away my whole kingdom ? ” 

“ Do ? ” said Peronella. “ Your Majesty will 
laugh and dance and sing as I do ”; and she 
laughed and danced and sung before her. 

The Queen, who could do nothing like 
this, asked Peronella how she would amuse 
herself if she were Queen, for she knew 
nothing of all the infirmities of age. 

“ I really cannot be quite sure what I 
would do,” answered Peronella, “ but I have 
a great mind to try the experiment, for 
every one says it is such a fine thing to 
be a queen.” 

While the Queen and Peronella were com¬ 
ing to an agreement, the fairy entered the 
room, and said to the country girl, “ Are you 
willing to make the trial, and see what it is 
like to be a queen, extremely rich, and a hun¬ 
dred years old ? ” 

“ I have no objection,” said Peronella. 



PERONELLA 


145 


In a single instant her skin became 
wrinkled, her hair turned gray, her teeth 
dropped out, her back was bent double, and 
she felt herself become helpless, and crippled, 
and ill-natured; she was already a hundred 
years old. The fairy touched a bell, and a 
crowd of officers and courtiers trooped in, 
all richly dressed, to do homage to the Queen 
and fulfill her will. A sumptuous repast was 
set before her, but she had not the least 
appetite, and, besides, she could eat nothing 
but soups and gruels; she did not know 
what to say, or how to behave, and was 
ashamed of the figure she must be making, 
especially as she sat where she could see 
herself in a looking-glass, and know all the 
time how very ugly she was. 

In the meanwhile the real Queen stood in 
a corner, smiling all the time to see how 
fresh and comely she had become. Her hair 
was beautiful, her skin was soft and rosy, 
her teeth were white and firm, and her figure 
was strong and tall. She could skip about 
as nimbly as a deer; but she was dressed 



146 


FAIRY TALES 


in a coarse, rough, short petticoat, and her 
cap and apron were poor and torn. She 
scarcely dared move in such clothes as these, 
and the guards, who never allowed such 
countrified, ragged-looking people within the 
palace gates, pushed her about with the great¬ 
est rudeness. Peronella, who was watching 
her, now said: “ I see it is quite dreadful to 
you not to be queen, and it is still more so 
to me to be one. Pray, take your crown 
again, and give me my ragged petticoat.” 

The change was immediately made: the 
Queen grew old again, and Peronella was as 
young and blooming as she had been before. 
Hardly had this taken place when each 
began to repent of her haste and to wish 
she had tried a little longer. But it was 
now too late; the fairy required them to 
remain forever in their own conditions. The 
Queen cried all day long over her aches and 
pains, saying: “ Alas, if I were but Peronella ! 
I should, it is true, sleep in a poor cottage 
and live on potatoes, but I should dance with 
the shepherds under a shady elm to the music 



PERONELLA 


147 


of a flute. Of what use is a bed of down to 
me, since it gains me neither sleep nor ease; 
or so many attendants, since they cannot 
make me comfortable ? ” 

So the Queen’s fretfulness increased her 
pain; nor could the twelve physicians, who 
constantly attended her, be of the least serv¬ 
ice. She died about two months later. 

Peronella was dancing with her companions 
on the fresh grass by the side of a flowing 
stream when the news of the Queen’s death 
reached her. She said to them, “ How fortu¬ 
nate I was in preferring my own humble lot 
to that of the Queen! ” 

Shortly after, Peronella was wooed by three 
suitors, who wanted to marry her. One was 
an old man, peevish and cross, a man of high 
distinction but so jealous that he would never 
let her out of his sight. The second was 
handsome and of good family, but improvi¬ 
dent and wasteful; he would be careless of 
his wife’s comfort. The third was a young 
shepherd of her own rank, who loved her 
dearly and could give her a good, simple 



148 


FAIRY TALES 


home in her own pretty village. Peronella 
was tempted by the riches of the first and 
the good looks and promises of the second, 
but she remembered how miserable she had 
been as queen. She married the shepherd, 
and they lived a simple, happy life for many, 
many long years. 











FAIR GOLDILOCKS 

T HERE was once a King’s daughter who 
was so beautiful that nothing in the 
world could be compared with her. And be¬ 
cause she was so beautiful, and because her 
hair was finer than spun gold and fell in 
waves to her feet, she was called Princess 
Goldilocks. She always wore a crown of 
flowers; her dresses were embroidered with 
diamonds and pearls; and every one who 
saw her loved her. 


149 




























FAIRY TALES 


150 

In a neighboring country there lived a 
young King who was not married, and who 
was very handsome and very rich. When 
he heard all that was said about fair Goldi¬ 
locks, before he had ever seen her, he fell so 
deeply in love with her that he could neither 
eat nor drink for thinking of her. He deter¬ 
mined to send an ambassador to ask for her 
hand in marriage. He had a splendid coach 
made for his ambassador, and giving him 
more than a hundred horses and a hundred 
servants, he charged him well to bring the 
Princess back with him. 

After the ambassador had departed noth¬ 
ing else was talked of at the court but his 
mission. The King felt so sure of Goldi¬ 
locks’s consent that he set his people to mak¬ 
ing beautiful dresses for her, and splendid 
furniture for her suite of rooms. Meanwhile 
the ambassador reached her court and deliv¬ 
ered his message. But either the Princess 
did not happen to be in a good humor that 
day, or the offer did not suit her fancy, for 
she told the ambassador that she thanked 



FAIR GOLDILOCKS 


151 

the King, but she had no desire to marry. 
The ambassador left the Princess’s court feel¬ 
ing very much cast down at his failure. He 
was bringing back all the gifts that the King 
had sent her, for the Princess was too well 
brought up to accept the pearls and diamonds 
when she was refusing the King; but, in 
order not to give offense, she kept a little 
package of English pins. 

When the ambassador reached the King’s 
capital, where the King was waiting impa¬ 
tiently, every one was in great distress be¬ 
cause he had not brought fair Goldilocks 
back with him. The King wept like a child, 
and no one could console him. 

Now there was at the court a young man 
who was handsomer and more gifted than 
any one else in the kingdom. Because of 
his grace and his ready wit he was called 
Charming. Every one liked him except a 
few people who were jealous of him because 
the King showed him favor and made him 
his confidant. One day Charming was with 
some people who were talking about the 



FAIRY TALES 


152 

ambassador’s return and were saying that 
his visit did not seem to have done much 
good. Without thinking very much what 
he was saying, Charming remarked, “ If the 
King had sent me to Princess Goldilocks I 
am sure she would have come back with me.” 

Then these telltales ran straight to the 
King and said: “ Your Majesty, what do you 
think Charming has been saying? That if 
he had been sent to Princess Goldilocks he 
would have brought her back with him. Did 
you ever hear of such impudence ? He thinks 
he is handsomer than you, and that she would 
have fallen so deeply in love with him that 
she would have followed him anywhere.” 

The King was beside himself with anger. 

“ Ha, ha! ” said he ; “ so this spoiled young¬ 
ster laughs at my misfortune, does he, and 
thinks himself better than his King? Go 
and put him in my great tower, and let him 
die of hunger.” 

The King’s guards went to fetch Charm¬ 
ing, who had quite forgotten his idle speech, 
and dragged him off to prison with all kinds 



FAIR GOLDILOCKS 


153 


of violence. The poor boy had only a little 
straw for his bed, and he would have died 
had it not been for a little stream which 
flowed through the tower, at which he could 
get water to cool his parched tongue. One 
day when he was in despair he cried aloud: 
“ What can I have done to offend the King ? 
He has not a more faithful subject than I. 
I have never done a thing to harm him.” 

The King happened to be passing near 
the tower and heard the voice of his former 
favorite. He stopped to listen, in spite of 
the efforts of Charming’s enemies, who tried 
to persuade him to have nothing to do with 
the traitor. But the King said: “ Let me 
alone. I want to hear what he is saying.” 

At the sound of Charming’s laments, tears 
filled the King’s eyes, and he opened the 
tower door and called to him. Charming came 
forward in a pitiable state, and, throwing him¬ 
self at the King’s feet, said, “ What have I 
done, sire, to deserve this cruel treatment?” 

“You mocked me and my ambassador,” 
said the King. “You said that if you had 



154 


FAIRY TALES 


been sent for Princess Goldilocks you would 
have brought her back.” 

“It is true, your Majesty,” replied Charm¬ 
ing. “ I should have told her so much about 
you and your good qualities that she would not 
have been able to refuse you. But I cannot 
see what there is in that to displease you.” 

When the King considered it from this 
point of view he could not see anything in 
it to make him angry, and began to frown 
fiercely on those who had made him believe 
ill of his favorite. He took the boy away 
with him, repenting deeply the wrong he 
had done him. When he had seen to it that 
Charming had a good supper, he called him 
to his private room and said: “Charming, I 
am as much in love as ever with fair Goldi¬ 
locks ; her refusal has made no difference in 
my feelings. But I do not know how to gain 
her consent. I should like to send you to see 
if you could succeed.” 

Charming replied that he was ready to 
fulfill his King’s least wish, and would set 
out the next morning. 



FAIR GOLDILOCKS 


155 


“But wait,” said the King; “I want to 
provide you with a fine escort.” 

“ There is no need of that,” answered 
Charming. “ I want only a good horse, and 
letters from you.” 

The King was delighted at his willingness 
to start so soon, and provided him with what 
he needed. It was on a Monday morning 
that he started out alone, thinking always, 
as he went, how he should persuade Prin¬ 
cess Goldilocks to marry the King. In his 
pocket he carried a writing tablet, and when¬ 
ever a happy thought occurred to him he 
dismounted from his horse and sat down 
under the trees to write it, so that he might 
be sure not to forget anything which might 
be of use in his speech to the Princess. 

One morning, when he had started early, 
as he was crossing a great meadow he had 
a capital idea. So he sprang from his horse 
and sat down under a willow tree by a little 
stream. When he had written it down he 
began to look about him and admire the 
pretty place where he had stopped. Then 



FAIRY TALES 


156 

he saw a great golden carp panting and 
gasping on the grass. In leaping after little 
flies, it had jumped too far, and was lying 
on the bank, almost dead. Charming was 
sorry for it, and though he might have car¬ 
ried it away for his dinner, he picked it up 
gently and put it back into the stream. It 
sank to the bottom, drinking in the cool, 
refreshing water, and then, swimming gayly 
up to the bank, it said: “ Charming, I thank 
you for the kindness you have shown me. 
But for you I should have died. By this 
act you have saved my life; one day I will 
repay you.” 

With these words it plunged into the 
water again, leaving Charming greatly sur¬ 
prised at its politeness. 

Another day, as he was going on his way, 
he saw a raven in great distress. The poor 
bird was being pursued by a great eagle. It 
would soon have been caught and eaten up, 
had not Charming quickly taken his bow 
and arrow and shot the eagle dead. The 
raven perched joyfully on a tree. 



FAIR GOLDILOCKS 


157 


“ Charming,” said he, “ it was very gener¬ 
ous of you to come to the aid of a poor 
raven. I shall not be ungrateful. Some day 
I will repay you.” 

Charming thought this was very kind of 
the raven, and went on his way. 



Before sunrise one morning, when it was 
so dark that he could hardly see his way, he 
heard an owl crying out as though it were 
in distress. 

“ Hark ! ” he said ; “ that owl seems to be in 
great trouble. It must be caught in a snare.” 

So he began to hunt about, and soon found 
a great net spread by some fowlers. 







153 


FAIRY TALES 


“ What a pity it is that men do nothing 
but torment and persecute poor creatures 
that never do them any harm!” he said; 
and taking out his knife he cut the cords. 
The owl flitted away, but came back quickly 
and said: “ Charming, I need not tell you 
what a great service you have done me. At 
daybreak the fowlers would have come and 
caught me. Without your help I should 
have been killed. I am grateful, and one 
day I will repay you.” 

These were the three chief adventures that 
happened to Charming on his journey. He 
made all possible speed to reach the palace 
of fair Goldilocks. When he arrived there 
he dressed himself with the greatest care in 
a suit of rich brocade, and put on a hat with 
scarlet and white plumes. Over his shoulder 
he threw an embroidered scarf. He carried 
on his arm a little basket in which was a 
pretty little dog that he had bought on 
the way. He looked so handsome and gay 
when he presented himself at the palace 
gate that the guards paid him great respect, 



FAIR GOLDILOCKS 


159 


and sent in haste to announce to Princess 
Goldilocks that Charming, ambassador of 
her neighbor the King, desired to see her. 

“Charming,” repeated the Princess; “the 
name promises well. I am sure that he is 
handsome, and that every one likes him.” 

“ Indeed, that is true,” said all her maids 
of honor at once; “ we saw him from the 
window of the garret where we were spin¬ 
ning flax, and we could do nothing but look 
at him as long as he was in sight.” 

“ So that’s the way you spend your time, 
is it,” replied the Princess, — “gazing out 
of the window at handsome strangers ? Go 
cpiickly, and get me my blue satin embroid¬ 
ered dress. Let one of you comb my hair, 
and another make me fresh garlands of 
flowers. Get me my high-heeled shoes and 
my fan, and tell them to sweep my hall 
and my throne. I want him to find me in 
truth ‘ Fair Goldilocks.’ ” 

All the maidens rushed this way and that 
to make the Princess ready. They were in 
such a hurry that they ran into and hindered 



i6o 


FAIRY TALES 


one another. However, at last the Princess 
passed into her gallery of mirrors to make 
sure that everything was as it should be. 
Then she mounted her throne of gold and 
ebony and ivory, and told her ladies to take 
their guitars, and to play and sing softly. 

Charming was led into the audience room, 
and stood so dazzled with admiration that at 
first he could not speak. Presently he took 
courage, and delivered his speech, eloquently 
pleading with the Princess to spare him the 
unhappiness of returning without her. 

“Sir Charming,” answered she, “all the 
reasons which you have given me are very 
good, and I assure you I should take more 
pleasure in obliging you than in obliging 
any one else; but you must know that a 
month ago, as I was walking by the river 
with my ladies, I took off my glove, and as 
I did so a ring slipped from my finger and 
rolled into the river. This ring was more 
precious to me than my kingdom, and you 
may imagine how distressed I was to lose 
it. I vowed then never to listen to any 



FAIR GOLDILOCKS 


161 


proposal of marriage unless the ambassador 
first brought me back my ring. So now you 
see what you have before you; for if you 
talked to me for fifteen days and fifteen 
nights you could not make me change my 
mind.” 

Charming was very much surprised by 
this answer, but he bowed low to the Prin¬ 
cess and begged her to accept the embroid¬ 
ered scarf and the little dog he had brought 
with him. But she said she did not wish 
any presents, and bade him think of what 
she had just told him. 

When he got back to his room he went to 
bed without eating any supper, and his little 
dog, who was called Frolic, would not eat 
any either, but came and lay down beside 
him. All night long Charming tossed back 
and forth sighing. 

“ How am I to find a ring that fell into the 
river a month ago?” he said. “It is useless 
to try. She has chosen to set me a task 
which she knows will be impossible.” And 
he sighed again. 



162 


FAIRY TALES 


Frolic heard him and said : “ My dear mas¬ 
ter, do not despair; you are always lucky, you 
know, and, besides, you are too good not to 
be happy. Let us go down to the river as 
soon as it is day.” 

Charming only petted the dog a little and 
said nothing, but after a while he fell asleep. 

At dawn Frolic began to jump about, and 
awoke his master. They went down to the 
river together, and wandered up and down. 
Charming was thinking sadly of starting 
for home when he heard some one calling, 
“ Charming ! Charming ! ” 

He looked all about, and thought he must 
be dreaming, for he could not see anybody. 
He walked on, and again the voice called, 
“ Charming! Charming ! ” 

“ Who is calling me ? ” he said. 

Frolic, who was running along close to the 
water’s edge, cried out, “ All that I can see 
is a golden carp.” 

And there, to be sure, was the great carp, 
and it spoke to Charming, saying: “You 
saved my life in the meadow by the willow 



FAIR GOLDILOCKS 


163 


tree, and I promised to repay you. See, dear 
Charming, here is Princess Goldilocks’s ring.” 

Charming stooped down and took the ring 
from the carp’s mouth, thanking it over and 
over again. Then he and little Frolic went 
straight to the palace. Some one told the 
Princess that he was asking to see her. 

“ Ah, poor boy ! ” she said; “ he has come 
to say good-by. He has doubtless decided 
that it is impossible to do what I asked.” 

But in came Charming, and presented the 
ring to her, saying: “Princess, I have done 
your bidding. Will it please you to accept 
the King, my master, as your husband ? ” 

When the Princess saw her ring brought 
back to her unhurt, she was so astonished 
that she thought she must be dreaming. 

“ Surely, Sir Charming,” she said, “ you 
must be the favorite of some fairy, or you 
could never have found it.” 

“ Madam,” he replied, “ I know no fairy, but 
I had a great desire to obey your wishes.” 

“ Then, since you are so willing,” said she, 
“you must do me another service; otherwise 



164 


FAIRY TALES 


I will never marry. Not far from here there 
is a Prince called Galifron, who is determined 
to marry me. When I refused he uttered 
most terrible threats that he would lay waste 
my kingdom. But how could I accept him ? 
He is a giant, taller than a tower, and thinks 
no more of eating a man than a monkey does 
of eating chestnuts. He talks so loud that 
those who are near him become deaf. I told 
him I did not wish to marry, but he has 
never ceased to persecute me and to kill 
my subjects. So, before I listen to your 
proposal, you must kill him and bring me 
his head.” 

Charming was somewhat startled by this 
proposal, but he answered : “ Very well, Prin¬ 
cess Goldilocks, I will fight this Galifron. I 
believe I shall be beaten, but I will die a 
brave man.” 

The Princess was frightened at this. She 
told Charming everything she could think 
of to prevent him from undertaking the ad¬ 
venture, but it was all in vain. He withdrew 
to arm himself properly, and then, taking little 



FAIR GOLDILOCKS 


^5 

Frolic with him, he mounted his horse and 
set out for Gahfron’s country. Every one he 
met told him what a terrible giant Galifron 
was, and how nobody dared to go near him. 
The more he heard about him the more fright¬ 
ened he became. Frolic tried to encourage 
him by saying: “ Dear master, while you are 
fighting the giant, I will go at him and bite 
his legs. Then when he stoops down to drive 
me off, you can kill him.” 

Charming admired the little dog’s spirit, 
but knew his help would not amount to 
much. 

At last he drew near to the giant’s castle. 
All roads leading to it were covered with 
bones of men the giant had killed. Before 
long he saw Galifron coming through the 
wood. His head was higher than the tallest 
trees, and he was striding along, singing in 
a terrible voice: 

“ Bring out children for me to eat; 

They are the nicest kind of meat. 

The more you bring, the better ’twill be, 

For all in the world would not satisfy me.” 



i66 


FAIRY TALES 


Then Charming began to sing to the same 
tune: 

“ Come and look upon bold Charming; 

He does not think you very alarming. 
Although he is not as big as you, 

He’s come a giant to subdue.” 

When Galifron heard these words he 
looked all around and soon caught sight of 
Charming, standing sword in hand. He flew 
into a terrible rage, and aimed a blow at 
Charming with his heavy iron club, which 
would certainly have killed him if it had hit 
him; but at that moment a raven perched 
on the giant’s head and pecked out both his 
eyes. The giant struck out blindly in every 
direction, but Charming easily avoided his 
blows, and wounded him so severely with 
his sword that he fell to the ground. Then 
he cut off the giant’s head, while the raven, 
who was perched on a tree near by, said: 
“You see I have not forgotten the service 
you did me in killing the eagle. To-day I 
think I have fulfilled my promise to repay 




167 















FAIRY TALES 


168 


“It is I who am the debtor to you for 
your timely help,” replied Charming, “ and I 
am very grateful to you.” 

Then he mounted his horse and rode off 
with the head of Galifron. 

When he came to the town every one ran 
after him, crying: “ Here comes brave Charm¬ 
ing ! He has killed the giant! ” 

The Princess heard the shouts, but she did 
not dare to ask what had happened for fear 
she should be told that Charming had been 
killed. But soon Charming came in with the 
giant’s head, the very sight of which fri ght- 
ened her, although she knew that Galifron 
would never trouble her again. 

“ Princess,” said Charming, “ I have killed 
your enemy. I hope you will no longer refuse 
the King my master.” 

“ I must,” said fair Goldilocks, “ unless you 
can bring me some water from the Grotto of 
Darkness. This is a very deep cavern, about 
six leagues long. The entrance is guarded 
by two dragons with fire coming out of their 
eyes and mouths. When you get inside the 



FAIR GOLDILOCKS 


169 


gate you go down into an immense hole, 
full of toads and adders and snakes. At the 
bottom of this hole is a little cave, in which 
rises the Fountain of Beauty and Health. It 
is some of this water that I must have; it 
has wonderful power for those who bathe in 
it. If you are beautiful, you will always re¬ 
main so; if you are ugly, you become fair. 
If you are young, you never grow old, and 
if you are old, you become young. You see, 
Charming, that I really could not leave my 
kingdom without carrying some of this water 
with me.” 

“ Princess,” he said, “ you are so beautiful 
that you can never have any need of this 
water; but I am an unhappy ambassador 
whose death you desire. I will go in search 
of what you wish, though I know I shall 
never return.” 

The Princess showed no sign of taking 
back her request, so Charming set out with 
his little dog, Frolic, for the Grotto of Dark¬ 
ness. Every one he met on the way said: 
“ What a pity to see so handsome a youth 



170 


FAIRY TALES 


throwing away his life so recklessly! He is 
going to the grotto alone; but if he had a 
hundred men with him he could never suc¬ 
ceed. Why does the Princess demand such 
impossible things ? ” 

He seemed to pay no attention to them, 
and went right along, but he was very sad 
at heart. At last he came to the top of a 
mountain from which he had been told one 
could see the Grotto of Darkness, and he 
looked about to find it. He saw a hideous 
rock, black as ink, out of which a thick 
smoke was coming. In a moment one of 
the fiery dragons appeared. Its body was 
yellow and green; it had great claws, and 
a long tail that lay in a hundred coils. Fire 
was shooting out from its mouth and eyes. 
When Frolic saw the dragon he was so 
frightened that he did not know where to 
hide. Charming, who was resolved to die in 
the attempt if need be, drew his sword, and 
took out the flask which Princess Goldilocks 
had given him to fill with the water of beauty. 
As he started for the cavern he said to Frolic: 



FAIR GOLDILOCKS 


I 71 

“ I feel sure that I shall die in the attempt to 
get this water. When I do not come back 
to you, go and tell the Princess that I have 
died in the effort to fulfill her wishes. Then 
go to the King my master and tell him of 
my adventures.” 

As he was speaking he heard a voice call¬ 
ing, “ Charming ! Charming ! ” 

“ Who calls me ? ” he said. 

Then he noticed an owl sitting in a hollow 
tree, who said to him: “You saved my life 
\Chen I was in the net, and I promised to 
repay you. Now I can do it. Give me your 
flask. I know all the paths through the 
Grotto of Darkness, and I will fetch the 
water of beauty for you.” 

Charming was delighted to give him the 
flask, and the owl flew into the cavern with¬ 
out any difficulty, and in less than a quarter 
of an hour returned with the flask full to the 
brim. Charming thanked him with all his 
heart, and joyfully set out for the town. 

He went straight to the palace and pre¬ 
sented the flask to Princess Goldilocks, who 



172 


FAIRY TALES 


had nothing more to say. She thanked 
Charming, and ordered that preparations 
should be made for her departure, and they 
soon set out together. The Princess found 
Charming so delightful a companion that 
she sometimes said to him: “ Why did we 
ever leave my kingdom ? I could have made 
you King, and we should have been happy 
together.” 

But Charming answered: “ I could not 
have done anything so displeasing to my 
master for all the kingdoms of the earth, 
though I think you lovelier than the sun.” 

At last they reached the King’s chief city, 
and he came out to meet Princess Goldi¬ 
locks, bringing magnificent presents. The 
marriage was celebrated with great rejoic¬ 
ings. But Goldilocks was so fond of Charm¬ 
ing that she could not be happy unless he 
was near her, and his praises were always 
on her lips. 

“ If it had not been for Charming,” she 
would say to the King, “ I should never 
have been here. You ought to be very 



FAIR GOLDILOCKS 


I 73 


grateful to him, for he did most impossible 
things to win me. Besides, he got me water 
from the Fountain of Beauty, so that I can 
never grow old, but shall be beautiful always.” 

Then Charming’s enemies, who envied him 
his good fortune, said to the King: “You 
don’t seem to be jealous, but you have good 
reason to be. The Queen seems to talk and 
think of no one but Charming, and how much 
he did to gain her. As if anybody you had 
sent could not have done just as much ! ” 

“ Now I come to think of it, I believe 
you are right,” said the King. “ Let him be 
chained hand and foot and thrown into the 
tower.” 

So they took Charming, and as a reward 
for having served the King so well he was 
shut up in the tower, where he saw no one 
but the jailer who brought him black bread 
and water once a day. But little Frolic 
stayed to comfort him, and brought him all 
the news. 

When Goldilocks heard of Charming’s 
disgrace she threw herself at the King’s feet 



174 


FAIRY TALES 


and begged him to set Charming free; but 
the more she wept and pleaded the more 
angry the King became, thinking that she 



loved Charming. At last she saw that it 
was of no use to plead any more; but she 
was very sad. 

The King took it into his head that per¬ 
haps she did not think him handsome enough. 





















































































FAIR GOLDILOCKS 


175 


So he thought he would bathe his face with 
the water from the Fountain of Beauty, which 
was in a flask on a shelf in the Queen’s room. 
She had put it there so that she might look 
at it often. Now it happened that one of the 
housemaids in chasing a spider had knocked 
the flask off the shelf. It had broken and all 
the water had been spilled. She swept up the 
pieces in great haste, and was at her wits’ 
end what to do, when she remembered that 
she had seen in the King’s room a flask just 
like this, filled with clear water. Without 
saying a word to any one, she fetched that 
and placed it on the Queen’s shelf. 

Now the liquid in the King’s flask was 
what was used in the kingdom for getting 
rid of unruly nobles. Instead of having their 
heads cut off, these nobles had their faces 
bathed with this water, and they fell asleep 
and never woke up. So one evening the 
King, thinking to make himself handsome, 

0 1 O 

took the flask and bathed his face in the 
water. Then he fell asleep and never woke 
up again. 



176 


FAIRY TALES 


Little Frolic was the first to find out what 
had happened, and he ran to tell Charming, 
who told him to go to Princess Goldilocks 
and beg her not to forget the poor prisoner. 
All the court was in great confusion because 
of the King’s death, but Frolic made his way 
through the crowd and said to the Queen, 
“ Madam, do not forget poor Charming.” 

She remembered all he had done and 
suffered for her, and without saying a word 
to any one she went straight to the tower, 
and with her own hands took off Charming’s 
chains. Then, placing a crown upon his head 
and the royal mantle on his shoulders, she 
said, “ Come, dear Charming, I make you 
King, and take you for my husband.” 

Charming threw himself at her feet and 
thanked her. 

Every one was delighted that he should 
be King. The wedding, which took place 
at once, was the prettiest ever seen, and 
Prince Charming and Princess Goldilocks 
lived happily ever after. 



NOTES 


In his critical edition of “ Perrault’s Popular Tales,” 
Andrew Lang has said that “ all the incidents of popular tales, 
like the bits of glass in a kaleidoscope, may be shaken into a 
practically limitless number of combinations.” All that can 
be done in a book of this size is to choose the best of these 
combinations. The notes below indicate parallels where the 
resemblance between tales is close and where a version 
originally foreign has practically superseded the early Eng¬ 
lish rendering. 

Page i. Rumpelstiltskin. Source: “Kinder- und Haus- 
marchen,” by Jacob Grimm (1785-1863) and Wilhelm Grimm 
(1786-1859). These German brothers made a large and 
valuable collection of fairy tales, gathering them from oral 
tradition and retelling them. English Parallel: “Tom Tit 
Tot.” This is the best of a group of stories involving the 
task of guessing a name, with which is here combined the 
demand by a supernatural being for a human child. 

Page 9. Doll-in-the-Grass. Source : “ Popular Tales from 
the Norse,” by George W. Dasent (Edinburgh, 1859), who 
translated it from the Norse collection of Peter Christen 
Asbjornsen and Jorgen Moe. Parallels: Grimm’s “The 
Three Feathers,” and Madame D’Aulnoy’s “ The White 
Cat” (Fairy Tales, Vol. II). In each of these stories sons are 
sent out to seek their fortune and return at last with wives. 

Page 14. Howto tell a Real Princess. Source: “Stories 
and Tales,” by Hans Christian Andersen (1805-1875), a col¬ 
lection of tales by one of the greatest story-tellers in the 
world. He originated many plots, and retold even familiar 
tales in a style that made them distinctly his own. 

1 77 


178 


FAIRY TALES 


Page 17. The Frog Prince. Source: Grimm. English 
Parallel: “The Well at the World’s End.” One of the 
oldest stories in Germany. Sometimes called “ Iron Henry.” 

Page 26. Cinderella. Source: “Contes de Ma Mere l’Oye,” 
by Charles Perrault (1628-1703), published in France in 
1697. The best English translation was printed in 1795 
under the title, “ Tales of Passed Times, by Mother Goose. 
. . . Written in French by M. Perrault, and Englished by 
R. S. Gent.” Our versions follow as closely as is consist¬ 
ent with modern English the quaint language of this book. 
Appearing as they did at a time when French society was 
reacting against its own extravagances, these simple, fresh 
stories became instantly popular. They were published under 
the name of Perrault’s little boy, and many critics think that 
“ the naivete and popular traditional manner of telling ” are 
due to him, while they recognize the polish of style and skill 
of selection of his literary father. Parallels : Many ; but, as 
Mr. Lang says, “ here we can distinctly see how the taste and 
judgment of Perrault altered an old and barbarous detail,” 
by substituting the fairy godmother for the friendly beast of 
earlier tales, and also by beautifying the stepmother incident. 

Page 42. Hans in Luck. Source: Grimm. 

Page 56. Diamonds and Toads. Source: Perrault, under 
the title of “ Les Fees.” Parallel: A universal tale with 
many variants, both in the motif of politeness rewarded, and 
in the incident of the adventures of the good and bad sisters 
or brothers. 

Page 62. Puss in Boots. Source: Perrault. Mr. Lang 
sums up the plot as that of “ a young man brought from 
poverty to the throne by the aid of a matchmaking and 
ingenious beast,” and remarks that “ Puss is a perfectly 
unscrupulous adventurer for no reason but the fun of the 
thing.” 

Page 75. Rapunzel. Source : Grimm. 



NOTES 


179 


Page 86. Beauty and the Beast. Source: The original 
tale, as told by Madame Villeneuve (died in 1755), occupies 
two hundred pages of the “Cabinet des Fdes,” Vol. 26 (1787). 
The framework and much of the text of our abridged version 
are taken from a chapbook, published in Glasgow by Francis 
Orr & Sons, which is in the Harvard Library. 

Page 108. The Steadfast Tin Soldier. Source: Hans 
Andersen’s “Wonder Stories Told for Children.” 

Page 118. Hop-o’-my-Thumb. Source: Perrault. “A tale 
which has signs of great antiquity.” 

Page 139. “Ainsel.” Source: T. Keightley’s “Fairy 
Mythology.” Parallels: A tale widely current in England 
with many slight variations. Cf. the outwitting of Polyphe¬ 
mus by Ulysses in the Odyssey. 

Page 141. Peronella. Source: “A Fairy-Book,” Harper 
& Brothers, 1836. Parallels: Many tales of wishes fulfilled. 
A traditional tale of long standing in England. 

Page 149. Fair Goldilocks. Source: Madame D’Aulnoy, 
a Frenchwoman who wrote many fairy tales. French text 
in “Cabinet des Fdes,” Vol. 2 (1787); English translation 
consulted under the title “The Fair One with Golden Locks ” 
in « Queen Mab . . . written by the Countess D’Aulnoy, 
London, 1770.” 




















































































































